On The Loose
by AirDrawnDagger
Summary: Trouble just happens to be Rogue's middle name. Summary will change. Eventually. Watch out for the potty language.
1. Chapter 1

**Give it look-see. Jus' try. :D**

**Disclaimer: Don't own a lick of Marvel**.

**Ch 1: On The Loose**

The mansion was eerily quiet for a Friday night in the mind of Remy Lebeau, who steadily paced himself through the hallways looking for one person in particular; that certain woman who made his stomach do flips and his knees buckle, Rogue. He had an idea for something to do but needed a partner in crime to tag along to do it.

He couldn't get over the fact that Rogue accepted his invitation a few days prior, not to a date, but more like friends enjoying a night on the town. What he remembered most was her 'Ah promise' line. It was unlike her to promise anything with him alongside of not being so indifferent toward him causing a flame of hope to kindle within. She was one-of-a-kind and he wasn't going to lose her.

Remy reached the door to her room giving his signature knock, not recieving any aknowledgrment during the anxious seconds he waited through. Nothing. How obvious, he thought, waiting several seconds before knocking again, "Rogue? Y' in dere?" His ear pressed against the door for any sudden noises. Nothing again. He pulled out his phone and called hoping her ringtone would give her away. His ear went to the door for the next few dial tones studying the silence on the other side. Her voicemail ended the call tones causing him to hang up. "Where de hell can y' be...?"

His feet took him to the entertainment room where he spotted his target lounging across the beat up leather couch with a blanket atop her legs watching MSNBC. Her arms were crossed as she rested on her side with the sleeves of her red t-shirt riding high on her shoulders, fully exposing her bare arms. She seemed to be sound asleep from his angle but couldn't tell for certain. The few times he watched her sleep were priceless; Rogue completely defenseless.

There was one way to be sure if she was really out cold: try and ruffle her feathers. Stealth was everything when sneaking up on Rogue because of her well trained senses. Defensive tactics were her specialty and he was well aware of her combat credentials. Remy's steps were flawless as he stood directly behind her leaning down to her ear before being startled by Rogue's voice, "Don't even think about it."

"Merde. Y' got me."

"Tryin' to be cute or somethin'? 'Cause it ain't workin'," Rogue sat up hastily covering her mouth as the yawn in the back of her throat made its escape, stretching her arms high in the air to relieve the tension.

His frame was straight as an arrow with a smug look attached to his face, "I don' have t' try."

Rogue couldn't help but joke giving him a wave-off, "Ok. Whatever helps you sleep at night."

"Don' sleep," a bounce from his eyebrow was nothing less suggestive, throwing his 'extracarricular activities' in her face with the same smug look, eyes like slits.

Rogue stared at him with a blank expression, "Well you do now."

"Touche. Got me again," Remy smiled his charm placing his hand on his chest as if it was a critical wound.

"Just so we can be clear on this, _Remy_, Ah don't fall victim to you're vulgarity and boasting about the bed post you widdled away from too many notches. Good luck getting mine," Rogue took her attention from the Cajun to the political news on the television in regards to the 'mutant problem'.

Remy knew to leave her with the last word of their banter and enjoyed the time it lasted. Small talk wasn't a strong characteristic when in Rogue's prsence but he definately had a staring problem. His eyes studied the rounded features of her face by the flashes of color the television produced as she continued to watch the news.

"What you doin' sleepin' on a Friday night, Chere? Unorthodox even for you."

"Ah wasn't sleepin', Swamp Rat. It's been a really long day and, honestly, Ah really don't feel like going out tonight," Rogue answered without any kind of negative emotions. She wanted to be forward and truthful with him but was a hard task to accomplish. Even though they both agreed it wasn't a date, she had a feeling the tide would turn it into something more whether it be on her own accord or his. She was scared of his game and what he could do to a womans heart.

His smile was beautiful but she never let it get to her head, "You need to get out a little, ma douceur. Do us both some good to get out of here. I can tell de boy scout's been givin' you problems in de Danger Room so lets have some fun for once and let loose."

"Ah'm not really in the mood to drink tonight, Sugah. Maybe you should get Pete to join ya instead."

"I dunno 'bout dat," he leaned his hip against the couch folding his arms across his chest. "You gave me your word, _Cherie_. Don' want to belive y' word is complete crap, do ya?" He questioned hiding his eyes beneath the locks of his lengthy hair.

She knew his persistance wouldn't fade in the slightest and glared at him with one pointer finger in his face and a firm voice, "Fahne but no funny business. Got it?"

"Of course, Rogue," his hands wents into his jean pockets. "Hands to myself."

Rogue slung the blanket across her shoulder as she got up from the sofa, "Alright. Just hold your horses and Ah'll be right out. Oh and by the way, you're buyin'." With a wink she headed down the hallway to the closest flight of stairs, leaving him with something to think about.

O.o

The table for two was more like a table for one, covered in shot glasses forming a pyrimid. Rogue couldn't believe she was acually having a good time with one she never would've considered a friend six months ago. For once she saw him in a whole new light, mainly the assorted colored lights in the bar mixed with the alcohol and cigarettes, and couldn't help herself by keeping her eyes on him to learn the things that make this man 'Remy Lebeau'.

"Down for a game of pool?" Her eyes drooped a little due to the alcohol as she looked into his.

"Only if you feel like losing, Cherie," Remy's feet touched the black floor with the sounds of peanut shells with sights on the abundant pool tables. "Be right back."

Rogue watched the man head off in the direction of the bar as she slid her middle finger on the rim of an empty shot glass and half-ass lipped the words to the song 'Money For Nothing' blaring over the overly expensive p.a system. He was so casual with everthing he did, even the way he passed his ID and the ball rental fee to the blonde bartender who looked like she wanted what she saw. Rogue studied how Remy worked his game; things to expect. And of course, he was a pro.

He walked to a table setting the poolballs on the blue material, grabbing the triangle from on top of the table light. One short nod for her to follow his lead was given while he sorted the balls into their needed spots.

Rogue felt her equilibrium float from side to side as she tried walking the short distance from her previous location to where Remy stood. "One shot too many," she muttered to herself, trying not to hold her hands out for balance.

"Dis gon' be easy," Remy bagan the friendly crap-talk when she stumbled next to him at the stick-rack.

"Shut it, Cajun. Talk shit and get your ass whipped. By a girl."

Remy laughed at her friendly yet threatening humor while he rolled two pool sticks across the table looking for a warps in the wood. He was enjoying everything about her on this rare night of laughter and liquor getting to witness another side of Rogue he desperately tried wring out.

He handed her the better of the two with a soft smile along with the blue chalk. Taking his, he went to the wall for the baby powder to reduce the resistence from the stick on his forefinger, "You breakin'?"

Rogue made a nasaly 'hell no' sound at his question before blowing the excess chalk from the tip, "Ah think not. Gotta habit of scratchin'..."

"Suit y'self," Remy made his roundabout the table debating on how to break the set, imbedding intimidation within his eyes.

The break was flawless as the solids and stripes mixed pocketing the five, gaining the solids for himself. Another shot was made with little effort allowing him to take his third. One by one the solids faded from the table with Remy taking the lead into victory with only the three left before he got his chance with the eight-ball. As he bent down to take out his red three, he could tell from the corner of his eye Rogue wasn't too thrilled about not standing a chance against him. Remy smiled to himself as he took aim for one of hers, "Y' grew soft, Lebeau." The green fourteen shot straight his left corner pocket, "Rats. Your turn, Chere."

She glared at his smug expression he can never seem to get rid of, "You did that on purpose."

He shrugged, "You'll get over it. Now, show me up like you think y' can."

"Gladly," Rogue observed the multiple shots she could make but wanted to take the easiest for a warm up. The ten was in her sights shooting it into the side pocket. To her right was the twelve directly center to the pocket. She bent down taking aim once more, looking straight down the pool stick. Without checking her surroundings, she reared the stick back far enough to hit the stranger behind her grazeing the mans forearm causing him to blackout, beer shattering on the floor before the mans knees gave out dropping onto the beer and shards of glass.

Remy's attention immediately went to her after the sound of glass and multiple deep voices yelling a few feet away, "Shit! Rogue!" He went to her as one of the men pushed her away making her to lose balance. Remy caught her from behind before ending up on the floor like the unconcious man. The liquor in her blood stream was still strong giving her lack of judgement, wrenching herself from Remy's strong grip to get to the man who assalted her. With her poisonous skin contained when needed, she pushed the large man onto the table behind him hands on his throat, crushing his windpipe. A second man with a very pissed look stood from beside his unconcious friend. Remy hurried the few feet it took in hopes of diffusing the situation. Diffusing Rogue was another story...

"Better save your girl, _mutie_," the second man charged at Remy with a fist in order to deal his damage. Remy's left caught the punch giving the man's knuckles a firm squeeze bending his wrist back. The mans holler of pain struck the attention of the others in the bar. Remy foot swept him to the ground next to his friend where he should've stayed in the first place.

Before Remy could locate Rogue another one of their friends took him from behind, getting him into a rear naked choke hold. His hands went to the mans forearm hoping his strength was enough to break the hold. This man was strong, maybe stronger than Remy himself but there was no luck in winning against the Cajun. Remy pulled down on his forearm once more for support of his upper body. Before the man knew what was in store for him, Remy's head began to bash the face of his attacker allowing himself to break free.

"Rogue!" Remy's voice boomed over the screams from the women in the bar causing her head to snap in his direction. He sped over, pulling her into an embrace, "We gotta go, Rogue! Shit's 'bout t' hit de fan!" A plethora of people stood around the scene as Remy charged them both through crowd to the back exit. The door slammed as they made their leave with the sounds of sirens in multiple directions, giving Remy's heart a leap in rythm. He looked down at a crying Rogue and right then he knew, they were in store for a long night.

**Been conjuring this idear for a good minute and decided to finally bring it to life. If you want, now you don't have to of course, drop that review :p Pretty please with a cherry on top!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank y'all for the adds and the reviews! You made this woman-child a very happy camper :p **

**Disclaimer: Don't own a lick of Marvel. Period.**

Ch 2: Not Gonna Get Us

Remy was glad to be a thief to say the least. The agility and stealth made running from the officials an easy task though the margin for error was vast having an emebriated Rogue at his side. He spotted his bike after the few blocks they trekked, feeling the adrenaline spread through his limbs and heart race with satisfaction. His hand went to the back of her head, giving a kiss on top. He made sure their eyes made full contact before speaking, "Be right back, love." A soft smile appeared on her lips as she watched him smoothly mount the bike in the distace. The moment the bike started was the moment he put it in gear, caring less about oil circulation or warming up.

He took the long way home in order to be discreet by staying off the main roads, zipping through the suburb streets of Bayville knowing the area like the back of his hand. Rogue held on with all her impared strength around Remy's torso, making sure to lean in with his sharp turns at high speeds.

Like the flick of a switch, Rogue yelled for him to stop the bike noticing a landmark indicating the short distance they had before reaching the mansion. The moment she felt the bike come to a halt she tore herself away from Remy, hands on both knees leaning over in the middle of the street. He knew she could drink heavily and when she did, it usually came back up. Remy initiated the kickstand and turned the front wheel in with the lean before consoling Rogue. His warm hand went to her cotton covered back making small circles of comfort.

He wanted to know what happened in order for women to shriek and scream the way they did. Horrific sounds. There was no way in hell he could keep his eye on her during the brawl, having his own hands full. She was a one woman arsenal who was capable of dealing lots of damage in a short amount of time.

He sat her down on the closest curb the moment she lost her balance, "Easy dere. Collect y' self fo' a moment." He was stressing badly. Bad enough to kill it with a cigarette. His hand went to his front jeans pocket finding it full of miscellaneous change but no cigs. The other hand found nothing in the opposite pocket as well. Shit, he thought, left dem in de bar.

Questions raced through his mind looking down the road toward the mansion and couldn't help but let one slip, the most obvious and most though of. He knelt down beside her placing a hand on her shoulder, "What happened, Chere?"

The question immediately formed tears in her eyes and caused a severe case of nausea. She couldn't speak without vomit nipping at her reflexes, shaking her head no instead.

"I just want t' know if dis is worth runnin' from de police. We could be out in de mornin' instead of gettin' elbow deep in shi-"

"Ah killed him, dammit! Ah sucked the life from him!" Rogue was delerious from the alcohol and the psyches in her head handling the new addition of Jonn Reis.

Remy had no words to say as he felt the air escape his lungs. The gravity of the situation fell on Remy's shoulders like a ton of bricks by Rogue's testimony. He couldn't picture Rogue a killer ususally being all bark and no bite but now that it actually said and done, he had no idea how to picture her now. He refused to think it was her doing all the work, believing it had something to do with the psyches. Something snapped and he was going to do everything in his power to find out why. That type of aggression ran in someone like Wolverine, not Rogue. It terrified him with the thought of being 'an accessory' in that man's murder and sure as hell didn't want to see anything happen to his friend. He had a plan but needed to run it by Rogue first...

O.o

How they were able to dodge the law the entire way back to the institute was beyond Remy. The gates were a sight for sore eyes with elation filling Remy's chest, forming high hopes in his mind.

He could feel the weight of her head resting on his back and the tight grip she had on him. There was nothing he wanted to do more than touch her as she held him only because she had to, but to Remy, it felt right. He wanted to be the one she held at night and talked about future plans. He wanted to be her everything, the way he considered her. And he was going to protect his everything.

His hand went to the clutch, leaving the bike in first as he pulled up to the gate's entrance. The beeps to all four digits he punched in was like a melody to his ears causing the gates mechanics to to the rest of the work, "Almos' dere."

He gave the bike the perfect amount of clutch to throttle putting the bike back into first. Gravel popped beneath the tires as Remy kept his pace a slow one. His foot clicked the gear shift up one position into second doing his best to keep the rpm's at a low and contain the engine's combustion from exploding from the headers.

The closer they got to the mansion, the more his stomach did flips. The engine died in neutral allowing them to roll to a stop. The Harley was parked next to Rogue's truck, helping Rogue unmount before he did the same. Remy gazed at the full moon as he collected the words he needed to speak, "I need to talk to you, Rogue. I's kinda important..."

"What is it?" Rogue couldn't help the curiosity from forming by Remy's statement.

Remy ended his minor stare-down with the moon before speaking up mixing his words with the seriousness she never knew he harnessed, "We need t' jet out of 'ere. Jus' long enough fo' t'ings in Bayville t' calm down. Dose guys know we're mutants and dis place is wearing a flippin' target! It would kill me if somet'ing hap-"

Rogue's pointer and middle were placed on Remy's lips, politely cutting his sentence off, completely understanding how serious something like murder was especially when the mutant does the crime. Running was their only option for them both and Rogue wasn't going to argue the ultimatum, "We're takin' mah truck."

Remy shined a 'how-am-I-not-surprised' look but also realized it was the logical of choice, "Of course." Remy's eyes wandered across the house for bedroom lights, looking for the best area to sneak in through. It wasn't decided until he could get a look from the back. "I'm not sneakin' y' in de house 'cause y' still too drunk, Cherie. Gotta go in fo' some t'ings. Anyt'ing in particular y' need?"

"Jus' mah clothes really," Rogue answered with a shrug in tow.

Remy took hold of the passenger door handle pressing the old silver button with ease, hinges squealing from age as he pulled the steel door towards himself, "Chariot awaits, m' lady." He held it open enough for her to slip onto the benchseat.

The moment her back hit the cushion her head fell back onto the head rest, eyes closed. The best thing for Rogue, in Remy's mind, was to let her sleep off the liquor until they found a place to rest on the way to wherever it was Remy felt suited. The door shut softly as he watched her drift off to sleep through the glass window.

O.o

First thing on the list were the keys to the truck and, lucky him, they were in plain sight. Remy found Rogue's old high school checker board backpack on the reverse side of her closet door spotting the large amount of shirts hanging from hangers. There were too many to choose from but yanked the ones he knew were the most worn along with her old pair of Converse she religiously wore, tossing them into the bag.

He overlooked her room and saw her favorite jeans, more like his favorite jeans on her, in a chair beside her bed. "Where de hell is de make up kit? She gon' kill me if I don' get it," his whispers were frustrated, feeling time pressed against him. His hurried steps took him to her bathroom there he found her big black box of things he knew nothing of but knew it was the grail of his findings. Her toiletries were stuffed into the front pocket, giving room in the main section for his favorite part, her undies.

The drawers were wrenched open one at a time finding a few more pairs of jeans until the right one overwhelmed him by the colors he never would've imagined her wearing, "And bingo was his name-o." The victory was short lived, taking a hand-full of underwear and several rolls of socks. "Not'ing I would've imagined... Mon Dieu," he spoke to himself in excitement as he zipped the backpack and loosened the straps for his much broader physique before throwing it over his shoulder.

He was like a thief in the night making it to his own for essentially the same things. A split decision caused him to stop by one's before leaving the residency permenantly. The door was silent as he slowly pushed his way through the entrance. The image inducer on Kurt's bedside table was golden in his eyes and wasn't going to let this be any different than any other heists in the past. Remy's fingers nimbly took the sides of the wristband, lifting it off the table and into his possesion. Success.

His exit was flawless as ever leaping to the grass below from the second floor. The extra weight from their belongings was nothing to compromise his strength, gaining stamina a few seconds after his feet met the grass. Remy did a three-sixty by checking his surroundings, ensuring he hadn't been spotted by any of the large amount of students he encountered on a day-to-da basis. The gate he entered was a few feet away and so was the truck containing an incapacitated Rogue.

With hardly any metal-to-metal contact, the gate closed behind Remy. He pulled the keys out of his front pocket, looking for the GM ignition key in the bright moonlight, sifting through the abundance of keys on her ring, "Damn, girl, what de hell are all dese fo'?"

The squared key was found a few moments after he began his search, reaching for the aged driver door handle. It sqeaked briefly until the door was fully open, shrugging off the bags to the ground below his feet. He sat the black box on the seat beside Rogue then set her back pack on the floorboard followed by his own. His hand looked for a lever of some sorts to push the seat back to work with the length of his long legs. Much to his dismay, Rogue's truck sat lower to the ground than what he was used to driving in the past, successfully bumping his head on the door frame while trying to duck low enough to enter.

The starter of the El Camino turned before the engine cranked, immediatly starting fire to the working components. The strings in his heart made him look back to the only home he felt welcome at. Remy's hand gripped the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white, holding back the shame and regret it took to turn his back on the X-Men after everything they did to turn his life around. In time, they would forgive them both for their negligence and understand the reasons behind their rash decisions. Without a second more to spare, his hand grabbed the shifter on the column pulling it down to drive, feeling the small jerk of the transmission as it went into first, driving straight to the gate ahead.

The moment the iron gates let them into the world beyond the school, his gaze went to Rogue's sleeping form who rested most of her weight against the door frame, wondering about the open road ahead and what tomorrow had in store for them. His hand went to the volume dial of the ancient radio clicking it to the right allowing the low volume to expell from the speakers. The melody was unfamilliar to him but recognized its country rythm and the acoustic guitars, giving him the notion to travel south or southwest. But where? Texas was out of the question and he sure as hell wasn't living in Kansas.

Remy thought of Xavier's unexpected absence and Jean's team of X-Men in outer space dealing with the Shi'ar Empire from global domination, therefore, Cerebro was useless in hopes of the X-Men finding them. The mere thought painted a smile on his face.

Continuous flow of lights traveled up the cowl induction hood somewhat helping with Remy's internal debate wishing Rogue was awake to lend her much needed opinion. Without paying full attention, a passing street sign clicked something inside, assuring himself it would be the most unlikely of places for the X-Men to search. Now all he needed was an interstate.

**I had some fun typing this one! This whole story is gonna be fun for me nonetheless if you wanna stick around for the fun and lots of Romy goodness! Gimme some love, y'all, and tell me whatcha think! Deuce! -HS**


	3. Chapter 3

**Oh mylanta, y'all! Thanx to those who reviewed and 'scribed OTL! The adds to this story are amazing! Jus' keeps me truckin' along :p Bear with me though if I seem to take too long in getting it where it needs to be but it will get there.** **This one's kinda jumpy tho and I'm not too keen with scene changes. **

**Disclaimer: We know what this bitch means... We know.**

**Ch 3- Over The Hills And Far Away**

The sound of a window unit and a pounding migraine stirred Rogue from her unpleasant dreams of suffocation and pure terror, eyes fluttering open as she got adjusted to her surroundings. Anxiety filled the pit of her stomach not having a single clue as to where she was. She couldn't see much due to lack of sunlight and a set of thick curtains but it didn't take a moron to figure she was in a motel room. And a cheap one at that, too.

She didn't remember leaving the mansion last night but remembered everything prior as if it where a movie replaying in her mind, constantly on repeat. The main subject was taking that man's life and her hands being the death blow. She vaguely remembered Remy and his plan to ditch the school but the thought of Remy brought minor relief to the anxiety.

Rogue's hand wrenched the worn blanket to the side as she lethargically rose herself from the stabbing springs of what was called a mattress and followed the ring of light protruding from behind the curtain's silhouette. She inched it open not wanting to blind herself in the process. Squinting as she peered out the glass, her burgundy El Camino was parked directly in front of their room. Turning around with the curtain still open, she noticed Remy dead asleep in a seperate bed with his bare back facing her. She looked around the dingy room spotting a bedside lamp between the beds allowing the curtain to black out the room once more as she released it from her grip.

She was blind in the darkness but had a sense of direction as to where her feet were leading. Reaching out into solid nothing, her hand missed the first couple times she tried to touch the lamp but eventually grasped the chain, pulling on it for much needed light.

The backpack she was all too familiar with rested on the floor in front of the nightstand, looking as if it were to bust at the seams with whatever it contained. To her surprise, her black box sat next to it. 'He knows meh a lil' too well,' she thought as she went for the stuffed bag. The double zippers on top were pulled apart from one another as the bag's opening widened with the colors of her unimaginables showing through.

She wore embarrassment as if it were in style, staring at the undergarments before her. There was no way in frosty hell she wanted Remy to know more about her than what he already did but this was horrifying. Who knew what he was imagining at this point now that he caught a glimpse of the unknown. Rogue felt she was a modest woman in her own respect and that was how it was going to remain.

Rogue tipped the bag upside down in desperation to change from last night's attire, shaking the stubborn clothing out. She was elated to see one of her favorite shirts in the cotton pile, putting that one to the side and her heavily faded bootcut jeans. The front pocket was unzipped. An exposed toothbrush and toothpaste were the last things she expected to see but thanked Remy in her thoughts as she yanked them from the pocket, anticipating on removing the unwanted taste from her mouth.

To get her morning on the road, she disappeared to the restroom instantly starting the shower water as the door closeed behind her.

O.o

The steam from the shower billowed through the doorway once the door opened, exiting an annoyed Rogue entranced by her own thoughts. Her hands controlled the towel, soaking it with her slow drying hair. The enhanced brightness in the room pulled her away from what occupied her mind to see Remy smoking his first cigarette of the day, door wide open as he leaned against the frame.

"Did Ah wake you up?" Rogue stopped messing with her hair momentarily.

He shook his head no, expelling the smoke before speaking, "Non. Been up fo' a while. Too much on my mind."

"Tell meh about it," Rogue muttered under her breath.

Remy's eyes were on Rogue as he took another drag, watching her stride toward her pile of clothes sifting for something, "Y' doin' ok, Chere?"

"About as good as I'm gonna get so far... First time washing mah hair with a bar of soap. Not very fun," Rogue let out a small laugh grabbing a pair of socks she knew she saw.

He didn't particularly care to bring up last night when she was in a relatively laughing mood. It wasn't his place to stir the pot, respecting her enough to leave the subject alone.

"Where are we anyways?" She sat on the mattress, bringing up one of her feet to cover it with a sock along with the other. A part of her cared not to know but the other part wanted to know how far they'd gotten.

The butt of the cigarette was between the nail of his middle finger and thumb, flicking it into an empty parking space next to the truck, "Knoxville. Straight down de I-80. Jus' stoppin' fo' de night so don' get comfy."

Rogue's expression was stunned with the realization of how far they traveled in one night, maintaining a positive outlook, "Never been to Tennessee before... Kinda cool actually. At least Ah get to see the sights along the way. So... Where is it that we're goin' to, Remy?"

"Nowhere special. It's country land and I couldn't t'ink of anywhere t' go," he shut the front door lightly then walked back to his bed for his own travel bag. "Gotta get goin' soon. We have about anot'er ten hours of drivin' but I definately want somet'in' t' eat befo' we hit de interstate."

O.o

Remy's time in the shower was time against her. She searched her truck's ashtray which was converted into a coin holder for a handful of silver change for the pay phone down the strip of motel rooms. Her only intention was to assure someone in that house that Remy didn't pull one of his stunts again and fill them in on bits and pieces of her carnage.

The black phone handle was lifted from the reciever, inserting two quaters then dialed a number she would never forget, Kitty's. The phone rang off the hook figuring she wasn't answering an unknown number's call. She hung up with two fingers and a case of irritation, making the machine pop out fifty cents to try again. And again she did.

Rogue was growing more and more irritated with every passing call tone of Kitty not answering. The girl always had her phone attatched to her hand but the one time she needed to talk to the girl... Poof! She's not there. At this point she knew reaching Kitty's voicemail was her best bet, mentally piecing together the message as the last call tone passed and the voicemail took over.

"Hey, Kit, it's Rogue. Sorry Ah missed you. Lettin' you know Ah'm alright and so is Remy. Don't worry about us, ok? Jus' took an impromptu road trip. We'll be alright and Ah'll call you sometime soon. Later, chick," the black handle went back to its resting place before turning back to the room.

Forcefully being disbanded from her friend tore at her heartstrings. Kitty was her best friend and someone she could always confide in when things got messy, like now. Remy wasn't even close to someone on her emotional level or better yet someone to trust when it came down to personal issues, afraid he wouldn't understand or _want_ to undertand.

O.o

The diner along the interstate was qaint and wholesome with a fifties vibe from the golden music playing from the speakers of the jukebox. She was excited to be in the state where the music she grew up with took shape. Too bad Remy didn't have intentions of staying here...

He was quiet for a majority of the morning finally speaking without being spoke to, cutting the silence with small talk, "Y' truck is fun t' drive."

Rogue finished sipping the Dr. Pepper through her straw, giving input to his statement, "Reason I bought it. That and it's a sexy ride."

"I's a '69, right?" Remy guessed, not having much skill for identifying classic American-made vehicles.

"Close but no. It's a '68. It's when they rounded the body style instead of looking lahk a box. If anything, Ah would rather have a '59..." Rogue's words drifted as she watched a waitress walk closer with two plates in her hands hoping to high heavens it was theirs. Nope. "You never told meh where it was you plan on takin' us."

Remy's eyes were on hers, holding a sense of playfulness behind them, "You really wanna know?"

"Duh, dorkus, or am Ah gonna have to get it outta you mahself?" Rogue arched her brow challenging his demeanor with her own. "'Cause Ah will."

"Chere, I already told ya i's nowhere special..."

Rogue quickly reached for his hand to get the answers herself but he was too agile even for her, pulling it away before she got him, "Dammit, Remy! Why's it so important you cain't tell meh?"

"Not'ing. Jus' bein' difficult," Remy couldn't contain a smile seeing Rogue get worked up over nothing. He had his reasons for not telling her but decided not to piss off the girl with the truck. "It's Oklahoma. As i said, nowhere special."

"Oklahoma? Where the buffalo roam? Talk about desolate," Rogue got her answer.

"I didn't know where t' go, and honestly, who's lookin' for us down dere?" Remy waited for some kind of half ass answer from Rogue but the silence spoke for itsself. "Exactly."

"Guess its decided then," Rogue kept her words positive with Remy's decision before taking another sip from her dark soda, shining a smile with her eyes. "Cain't wait to see you in the country."

**Alright! You know the drill! And if you don't know what the '68 El Camino looks like, google it. It's pretty rad. Anyways you'll jus' have to wait for the next chapter to see whats gonna happen. Til next time! -HS**


	4. Chapter 4

**Woop! Four down and a hella bunch to go! Thanx for the reviews (you know who you are) and those who subscribed to my nonsense! I totally dig it. **

**Disclaimer: Don't own CRAP 'cept the idea.**

**Ch 4- Got My Mind Set On You **

Leather seats and hot weather didn't mix. Especially when the air conditioner failed to work when needed. High winds that continuously swept through the cab did little to satisfy their heat problem. The two might've been born in the south where heat is your neighbor but the time they spent in New York was enough to spoil them.

The uncomfortable heat was getting the best of Remy, trying not to wear it on his face. Beads of sweat tickled his side burns occasionally causing him to grab his once worn shirt and wipe his face for momentary relief. The undershirt he wore stuck to him like lamination having absorbed an immense amount of perspiration since they hit the road late that morning. If it weren't for the 'being polite' thing, the shirt would've been removed miles ago. But at this particular time, the ground he shared with Rogue was even and stable which was unreal to Remy.

Remy could sense something within Rogue changed last night. He couln't place his finger on it but knew Rogue wasn't _Rogue. _He noticed how frequently she bit her bottom lip since they left Arkansas into Oklahoma. It was one nervous habit he knew she had usually indicating there was something was on her mind. He wanted to shake anything out of her since her silence started to speak as if the circumstances of last night were amongst her thoughts. Watching her struggle from afar was difficult for him, wanting to swallow her in his arms and whisper sweet words of comfort but, instead, he's forced to stand in the shadows and watch her suffer inside. He would just have to wait...

The country music heard from the speakers helped turn the country scenery into a wonder in Rogue's eyes, having been deprived of her homeland from the years up north. It made her giddy inside being able to get back in touch with her southern roots even if she'd never been to Oklahoma. She pictured the old show Bonanza when Remy filled her in with his plan and essentially thats what she saw since they entered the state: open nothing, maybe a few small cities but nothing.

The scenery wasn't enough for Rogue to divert the guilt that filled her whole conciousness and the callow feeling she contained for not having the guts to face the Justice System from her actions. The guilt ate at her soul every second the man's face replayed in her memory. The memories triggered tears to form as she listened to the man's thoughts; his voice within his thoughts. She was the one who ended everything for him. Taking the sleeve closest to the window, she wiped the tears from all four corners of her eyes to keep Remy from seeing her in such a vulnerable state.

Rogue's movements were felt throughout the cab alerting Remy to look over to his passenger, who looked to be in distress. He didn't know how to react to a crying Rogue or an upset one at that. For almost two miles Remy debated whether or not to do something to console her. His free hand traveled the contours of the leather, stretching his arm across the back of the seat to rest his hand on the material behind her head. The kicker of his little idea was to try and give Rogue a much needed hug. That was the major debate.

"Rogue?" His voice had been the only one spoken for the past five hours being content with the music in his ears.

Her puffy eyes sloppily left the countryside to meet his, having no idea what he had to speak about, "Yeah?"

"I know it's not my place t' ask but, do you wanna talk about last night or somethin'? I mean, I'm not de best person t' talk to, but I'ma set of ears dat can listen," Remy softened his words the best he could to show some sincerity behind his gesture.

"Ah dunno, Remy. Ah'm still tryin' to figure things out jus' gimme some time... Really don't like the fact Ah've got blood on mah hands. Even you haven't taken someone's life..." Rogue had to stop her words before they cracked like and egg.

"I do have blood on my hands, Chere. Not literally but I have caused a few people to die back in my day. Suprised y' haven't seen dat in dis dirty mind of mine," Remy looked over to her, bouncing his eyebrows when 'dirty mind' passed his lips.

She rolled her eyes before leaving them on the road ahead, "No but Ah have seen other things."

Remy laughed loud enough for her to hear hoping he can keep her from shutting back down, "Missin' out, love."

"What are you tryin' to brag about, Swamp Rat? That you're a slut? 'Cause the last time Ah checked, sluts don't get paid for their services," Rogue challenged his playful demeanor with her own. She knew he was doing it on purpose to get a rise on her quick temper.

Remy's red eyes stared back at her for a moment to figure what to throw back at her before a curve along the interstate directed his attention back to the asphault. His words were sweet enough to deflect a conflict, "Touche. Ok, you can label me a slut if I can label you a virgin. Deal?" A smile spread across his face hearing the silence that followed his words.

"At least Ah still have mah v-card."

"It's a shame. Jus' lemme know when you wanna trade it in," Remy was having fun with their moment of banter that he had been waiting for since they left the mansion.

A sign passed with the name of the specific town he spotted on a map, realizing they were less than an hour to their destination. Without a second thought he spoke again, cajun accent filling the cab once more, "We need t' figure somet'ing out befo' we get t' Marietta. Figure we gone far enough."

She looked over to her left, watching Remy as he held his attention on the road, "So we're goin' to Marietta, Oklahoma? You're the one with the money, it's your call."

"One t'ings for sure, we need a plan. Dere's no way we could pass as family, so I been t'inkin'... Best way to pass with de natives is to... Act as a married couple. Only in public. Who knows how dese folks t'ink when it comes to unmarried people of de opposite sex livin' toge'ter. I don' want t' draw attention to ourselves especially you," Remy had no idea how to address his plan without feeling stupid or kicking himself in the head.

Rogue kept quiet for a moment thinking his plan over. The thought of pretending to be married to Gambit sounded strange but knew it would pass off easily, "Let's go with it, then, sugah."

He felt the air escape his lungs the way her pet name rolled from her tongue. Her accent alone drove him up a wall and adding 'sugah' to the mix didn't help with his feelings toward her. If only she knew how indirectly at fault she was for leading him down the line she would be kicking herself in the ass. He couldn't help but see what she failed to... "T'ought about goin' by Royce Laughlin from N'awlins. It's de only name I could t'ink of dat I actually like unless you have ot'er suggestions."

Rogue shook her head no before speaking, "Ah lahk it. Ah think the name suits you for not being creole." She paused momentarily, dabating whether or not she was to use her birth name as her psuedom, now that they were on the subject. Remy had no idea of her real name or the town she was from so, essentially, Remy knew very little about her when it came down to her past life.

"Got an idea fo' yo'self? Kinda curious t' hear de creativity," Remy glanced to his right to briefly study the orange hue the sun painted on her skin as it lowered in their sights. He had never been alone with Rogue this long before and the longer he had her next to him, the harder it was going to be for her fighting him off. His fingers pinched the front of the thin cotton shirt toward the wheel to fan his overheated skin.

"What about... Anna?"

"What about it? Sounds like a solid name, t' me. Definately fits you," he flashed her a genuine smile, contacting her dark green eyes by accident, a smile forming on her lips. His eyes diverted back to the road ahead. For once he made her smile without trying and he felt a sense of satisfaction swell in his chest. As long as he was a man and she a woman, he was never going to end his pursuit for her heart. At least he knew there _was_ a chance.

Rogue kept the smile on her face as she spoke, "So we're Royce and Anna Laughlin."

Remy's chin nodded once she spoke, "Guess so." There wasn't a reason to feel pessimistic about their escape now. Rogue was talking to him and civily at that and felt like some sort of progress had been achived, not much but some.

"What're we gonna do when we get there ?" Rogue was clueless as to what Remy had stashed behind his genius.

"Pretty much getting dis show on de road. I'm gonna look fo' a house when we get dere while I let you rest. I have t' use my brot'er's information and social security in order t' rent a house for background checks and important documents. Luckily, Henri was de good child and has better credit dan Xavier ever will. Sometime dis week I will have to find work 'cause de money I have will get us by for MAYBE four or five months..."

The engine slowed its pace as Remy took his foot from the gas to the brake when the sign of their exit came into view, "I dunno 'bout you but I can't stand looking at dis road any longer, unless, dat is, you want to drive de rest of de dere?"

"Uh, no, stopping for the night sounds like a dream, honestly," Rogue had her eyes on the red neon marquee reading 'vaccancy' and knew tomorrow was just around the corner.

**Well at least they have a battle plan in the works! Be a badass and review this thang! Gimme a pay-off lol. Anyways, thanx a bunch for reading my jibberish! Til next time :D -HS**


	5. Chapter 5

**Alright, y'all. Soon enough we'll be dipping into the fluffy goodness we expect from a ROMY fic lol. Oh, Mylanta! Thanx to my reviewers, for reals, guys, thanx! If there's any input you have or what-not, feel free and tell me, aight? **

**Disclaimer: Don't own a DAMN thang. Capiche?**

**Ch 5- Under The Milky Way**

Four fill ups and two sunsets later, their exit from the I-35 couldn't've come any sooner for Remy, wishing he could get out of the classic ride long enough to maintain his sanity. Their arrival into Marietta took longer than what Remy would've cared for, always being the one to aim for punctuality with any plan executed. The surrealistic reds and oranges the sun produced glorified the insect carnage on the windshield he began to memorize. They even started creating figures like constellations as the splats grew in numbers.

The small town of Marietta was nothing of what Rogue envisioned of tumbleweeds, rolling dust clouds and dirt roads. But then again, its not 1933. Rogue held her arm out the open window catching the breeze on her fair skin as they proceeded down main street at a slow steady pace. The friendly environment was going to take some getting used to especially after dealing with the hustle and bustle of New York life. Not even ten minutes being in a new town and already those they passed waved 'hello' in Rogue's direction in which she felt compelled to return the gesture. There was no denying in Rogue's mind that she was going to enjoy the laid-back town from the vibrations she picked up, "Ah think you picked a good place, sugah."

Remy looked out his side window, taking in the foreign buildings and faces of locals. The rumble beneath cowl-induction hood caused a few men along the main street to turn their heads in the duo's direction. He sloppily aknowledged them giving them a small greeting, "I t'ink so, too."

"Feels lahk Ah'm stuck in the forties," Rogue couldn't help but express her excitement the more they trolled though the small city. Buildings showed their age by their architectural design and bricks missing along the top layers due to years and years of weather damage. This is what Rogue remembered in Mississippi.

They continued to take the main street out of downtown Marietta where the houses grew less and less abundant and the speed limit spiked from thirty to fifty-five, "Honestly don' t'ink we're goin' t' find a house at dis time o' day. Guess it'd be best to t'row de money away fo' a hotel."

"Weather feels lahk its cooling down a bit... If you want to, Ah mean, since we made it into town, we could pitch a tent in the back of the truck. Not literally but... Y'know what Ah'm sayin'."

"Wantin' to rough it out, den? Fine by me. Less money I gotta spend."

The gears from the transmission lowered as their speed drew closer to zero, feeling the momentum of the truck shift as Remy he turned down a dirt strip off the farm road to avoid any law infractment. The truck shut off less than thirty-feet from their turn with Remy throwing his head back in relief, "'Bout. TIME."

Rogue immediately lifted the stock handle til the pop from the latch allowed the steel door to swing open. She slowly exited the truck one foot at a time before stretching both arms to the setting sky, listening to the minute cracks in her spinal column. From what Rogue could see along the darkened hills were few lights meaning this place was more desolate than what she thought when she arrived in Marietta. All she could see in every direction were flat lands north and south.

Remy stood on the other side of the truck with his door wide open like hers, arms crossed on top of the roof. He watched in silence as the breeze lightly caused her loose strands of silver and chocolate to dance around her face. Her frame was stoic as she looked off into the west of the setting sun, "What you t'inkin' 'bout, Cherie?"

She turned quickly as if Remy was calling her back to reality, "Oh, uh, nothing..."

"You CAN talk to me, y'know," his persistance was challenging Rogue's stubbornness. "What's on yo' mind, darlin'?"

She was hesitant for a moment but knew he was right. Now that she didn't have Kitty to talk to... Remy really was the only one. "Ah cain't stop thanking you for bringing me here. Ah mean, Ah had mah doubts about this place but... Thank you, Remy."

Remy couldn't believe what he was hearing: Rogue _thanking_ him? Maybe she didn't dislike him as much as what he believed, "You're welcome."

He continued to watch her movements as she ducked back into the cab, pulling the checkered backpack from the cab and tossing it into the bed of the truck, "You should sleep in de cab where i's more comfortable. I'll sleep outside t'night."

"Honey, Ah jus' spent OVER twenty hours in that thing... Ah think not," Rogue was getting her way even if she had to sleep on the hood or a giant rock. She pulled the latch that resided on the reverse side of the tailgate allowing it to fall to an even level, hopping up on the metal structure peering into the vastness of the unknown.

Remy smiled at her from her declaration and knew she was right. There was no way in hell he going to sleep in the cab either, "D'accord." He followed her movements, retrieving his own property, a much larger bag, from behind the seat. A loud thunk emitted from the thin steel of the bed as the travel bad landed next to Rogue's.

The sun faded rapidly from view with the passing moments Remy remained in thought. He walked the direction the truck faced, kicking rocks with each stride closer into the darkness and out of Rogue's view. Grass in every dirction came up to his knees giving a playground for the grasshoppers to jump from blade to blade as he passed. He felt his thoughts were important enough to cut himself away from the young woman, giving himself some much needed space.

He couldn't get Rogue off his mind. No matter what his mind drifted to, it always reverted back to her. A hand went through his shaggy hair, which felt in need of a wash and a cut, gripping onto his roots in frustration. Rogue was in a different world than Remy was; one filled of remorse and regret among other things. His mind was in a complex, a serious one to say the least, between letting things be or going for what he desired. He was the last thing from her mind and has been for the longest time, considering his foolish actions years ago breaking every chance of gaining her trust. He didn't blame her for not trusting him but for something that happened when they were younger completely blew his mind. She claimed to have forgiven him after tons of apologies and gifts he pretty much had to shove down her throat but he always believed when you forgive, you forget. And didn't understand why she couldn't 'forget'.

"Get yo'self toget'er, Lebeau," he spoke, releasing an audible whisper. He glanced over his shoulder brifly to Rogue who faced the opposite direction. His tank tee was pulled over his head, then rested around his neck anticipating the breeze to cool the tanned skin of his torso.

He heard the sounds of quick footsteps along the gravel coming his direction. The person wasn't anyone he expected, pulling him from his thoughts as the stranger piped, "Excuse me, sir? You folks lost?"

Remy turned on his heel to the deep voice that called for his attention. It was a bearded man appeared to be in his late fifties from what he could tell with the waxing moonlight. His stature was a stocky one with a gut from drinking too many beers, "Saw you come down the road just up the way." He pointed in the direction of his home, continuing with his voice raspy from a life of smoking, "Didn't know whether you broke down or just plain lost."

Remy looked toward Rogue and the El Camino to keep the man from catching a glipse of his mutation, "Not necessarily lost. Me and de missus jus' drove into town not too long ago and we decided to stop fo' de night. Everyt'ings fine, merci."

"So where you from, anyway?" The man's voice was that of curiosity as opposed to an interrogation.

"Southern Louisiana. Born and raised," Remy's words were full of pride as he spoke them, not caring one bit if the man had an opinion.

"Your accent is strong, boy-howdy. I can smell a marsh stomper a mile away. Name's George Albernathy but the folks around here call me Sonny," he extended a large hand of his size to Remy, greeting the young man formally.

Remy couldn't help but take the man's calloused hand with a solid grip, speaking to him with utmost respect, "Royce Laughlin. Pleased t' meet you, sir."

"Well, Mr. Laughlin, pleasure's mine. Glad to know you two made it to our little big town safely but the ol' lady's waiting on me so I'm going to cut this short. Hope to see you folks in town sometime," Sonny's words were soft for a man with his amount of years under his belt, waving at Remy as he disappeared to the house he came from.

His decision to return to the truck was a forced one, setting everything aside in his mind for the sake of Rogue and everything in her world. She didn't need him making things worse by dropping the weight from his shoulders onto hers. He had to be realistic about things when it came to Rogue... His hand went to his front right pocket to retrieve his remedy to partially end his mental stress followed by a solid brown lighter, preferring the way butane made his cigarettes taste as opposed to his organic energy.

A rock Remy kicked in Rogue's direction caused her to snap out from her trance of stars upon stars above their heads, "There you are! Started wonderin' where you took off to."

"I'm touched, ma cherie. Didn't t'ink y' cared so much," each word dripped with sarcasm but meaning them all the same. His hands gripped each end of the shirt that continued to rest along his broad shoulders with the cigarette between his middle and pointer finger.

"Ah don't. But more than you think Ah do," Rogue cut her words off before saying too much, placing her attention back to the starry canvas. "Have you ever seen so many stars, Remy?"

He shot his eyes over to her as she studied the natural wonder she recently discovered then to the stars themselves, "Not like dis, no."

Rogue slid across the rubber bed liner to the head of the bed, palming the back pack for a soft spot to rest her head on before lying flat for the first time since she woke that morning, "Ah cain't remember seein' so many stars in mah entire life. Forgot how beautiful they can be." The constellations Rogue knew were difficult to find with the extra thousand in the mix compared to what the New York sky had to offer. Why would she want to go back after witnessing how beautiful the countryside could be...

Remy stood next to her as he looked into the depth then shined his own red orbs within the night toward her, "I's de small t'ings we take fo' granted."

Rogue took in his words, placing it in her back pocket, "Like life, y'know? How friagile it _really_ is..." She felt a momentary lapse of reality kick into her thought process, chewing on her own words. "The damage we caused and lives we sparingly took for the better good of civilization meant nothing to me before but... When _Ah_ killed a man... How can you _not_ think about things lahk that?" She was breaking.

"Rogue, people make mistakes, whet'er they be bad ones or good, but I don' t'ink you should let it be de one t'ing dat defines you. I know its still fresh in your mind but don' keep everyt'ing inside where its killin' ya, please? I'm doing everyt'ing in my power t' keep y' safe but I don' feel like I'm not doing enough to help..." Remy took another drag from his cig, holding in the nerve suppressor. His head turned the opposite direction to release the smoke.

His voice produced a sudden tenderness she wanted to hear again, just to be certain it wasn't a one time thing. She had to be a fool to not see his good intentions with everything he threw away in order to keep her from a future full of struggle and torment. It was all for _her_. She remained silent as she listened to the heart beats in her ears anticipating his suave voice would break the silence but nothing came.

The remainder of his cigarette dropped to the ground at his feet before taking a few steps away to the front of the truck, resting his weight on the chrome bumper. His head laid in his hands as he tried to remove her from his mind, cursing at her for the affect she had on him. "Give her some time, old boy," his whisper was barely audible even to himself.

He got up from the bumper to lie on the hood slowly resting his bare back against the cool windshield. His eyes went to the sky once more thinking about what was to happen to them knowing they couldn't run forever, no matter how hard they tried. All he was doing was buying time for the telepaths to return to the mansion in hopes they could help with the situation they landed themselves in. Best he could do was hope.

**YAY! This'n is done! Boo-yah! Just wait a wee bit longer y'all, please? Thats all I ask lol. Sorry for being such a tease with this, I guess. I know I get antsy when I anticipate a 'moment' lol. Gimme a bit, not much longer but still. Do what you do and click that blue hyperlink down low. Y-yeah **_**there**_** it is. Til next time!-HS**


	6. Chapter 6

**Well, peeps, I'm back again (Shit! Run!) Ha ha, no. It's not like I'm holding a knife to your throat to read this :p Anywho, thought I'd give a few words or what-not. The title of the story is the name of a song I got the idea from... Along with the names of the chapters, those too are song titles (in case you didn't catch that...) They're supposed to be symbolic of the relationship and what-have-you... I dunno lol. I really wanna do a song fic to 'Heart and Soul' by T'pau, my favorite 80's song (next to Saga's On The Loose :p)**

**Disclaimer: Yeah, yeah we know. If I owned Marvel, I don't think writing would be just a hobby... And I wouldn't be a Jedi at making tacos at the taco shack... #jussayin'**

**Ch 6- Handle With Care**

Rogue strolled with a slow pace having no particular place to be until Remy finished his main objective of finding a small house to occupy. Her hands rested in her back pockets while gazing into the large window displays she passed. The shade that engulfed her was a godsend in her opinion compared to the humidity and heat the afternoon sun produced.

Her neck was stiff from the back pack she rested on the night before and the flat bed was something her body didn't want to get adjusted to. Maybe the cab wasn't such a bad idea after all. Needless to say, she longed for a comfortable bed and a goodnight's sleep.

The reflection Rogue saw of herself filled her spirit with disgust and hatred. She wasn't proud of herself, far from it in the wrong direction. A voice in the back of her subconcious sounded to her, muffling out her own thoughts. Trying to pick apart who, of all psyches, were calling for attention, she struggled among the quantity of mental entities she contained. From the years she gained and people she met throughout her life, mens voices were harder to distinguish as opposed to the women. Indeed it was a man but it sounded hollow and distorted.

A pain simillar to an acute headache caused her to give up on the search, losing breath at the same time. A blood rush clouded her vision as she gripped onto a nearby pole as her balance failed her. Strength in her arms barely kept her standing, feeling embarrassment cousre through the open spaces of her mind from the strangers that passed. It was a relief in a way no one stopped to lend assistance, trying to remain voiceless among them. Her free hand covered her already closed eyes to block out the sunlight bouncing off the street to reduce the sharp pain in her head, "Damn... What the hell... Was that?" Her words pained to think, much less whisper.

Once the black spots diluted and vision took its rightful place, she spotted a shotty wooden bench a few feet away against an upcoming hardware store to collect her composure. She stumbled as she crossed the pavement and rested herself on the aged wood. The pressure cracks in the wood gave Rogue no relaxation to her dizziness. She had no idea that to think of the sudden occurance as the pounding turned into a tingle in the back of her head causing the unmanageable hairs on her neck rise. Rogue's elbows rested on her knees with her clammy hands on her neck to suppress the strands.

It didn't feel like an ordinary headache from what she could distinguish but had no answers even for herself. She needed Xavier's professional opinion and mental analysis but his sabbatical came at a horrible time, usually being there for the others when they were in distress or in a jam. Hers felt like being stuck in between a rock and a hard place.

Jean was gone, too, but for reasons Rogue understood. The Phoenix was at her doostep, calling to her if you will, and felt there was no other ultimatum than to save the earth from event horizon. If anyone was to stop the cosmic force, there was no denying it would be Jean Grey. Of what Hank described about the Phoenix to Rogue, it topped the rapture she learned from her baptist upbringing. The Phoenix was armageddon, when the world ends in fire or when it ends with nothing left at all. Jean was someone she took for granted, never appreciating the woman for leaving with the bravery it took to look the Phoenix in the eye, literally. Rogue, on the other hand, felt like a coward.

Rogue shook herself from the images that induced fear in her soul to sqint at the scene before her eyes. Older people seemed higher in numbers amongst those her age from what she witnessed. Couples in their graying years passed by with friendly smiles and delighted demeanors giving the town a down beat aura. It was a slow town to say the least, watching the older trucks putt at low rpms and slow speeds. They didn't appear to be in such a hurry to get to where they desired. This was the type of place she needed, a place to slow down and catch up on living.

Her sight directed to a piece of paper stapled to a wooden lightpost, only making out a few letters from its lack of stability against the wind. She stood from her seat to get a better glipse of what it advertised. Both hands flatened the paper on each side along the curve of the post reading the words fully. A help wanted sign needing an extra set of hands. She carefully tore it from the pole and folded it small enough to fit in her back pocket.

In the corner of her eye she could see a brownish-red color coming up the street, chrome shining in the brightness making her turn her attention to the approaching vehicle. She waved in advance to grab his attention as the rumble from the 396 cubic inch engine sounded louder each foot the tires rolled. His hand appeared through the driver window above the roof signaling back.

Rogue quickly jogged to the truck that stopped in the middle of the road feeling the pressure of possibly causing a traffic jam. The heavy door didn't slow her from hopping in the cab then slamming the door from aging door latches. Her hand wiped the strands of loose hair from her vision as she slammed against the back of the seat from Remy giving the truck too much throttle. She didn't scowl at him with the knowledge of how stiff the pedal was; something she procrastinated in fixing. The glove compartment started to grow more familiar than what she cared for being in her own truck. Being toted around was nice every once in a while but not being arrested to the passenger seat. It was something that began to bother her but kept that subject for a later day.

The sound of jingling filled her ears taking her rather annoyed thoughts away from brooding to Remy's grip on a set of keys, "Ready to roost, Cherie?" His excitement was written clear as crystal on his face.

He was rather amused at her reaction to the keys before her. Her eyes beamed a sea green in the sunlight that the passing trees failed to trap. They were filled with disbelief but quickly turned into the same excited feeling Remy wore on his sleeve, "Y-you really got 'em. Remy, you're a dream!" Rogue's hand made contact with his bare shoulder as she gave him a friendly shove.

He smiled to himself from the sudden brush of skin-on-skin contact keeping his attention to the road. It gave him some sort of satisfaction knowing he made her smile, let alone, he made her happy. He cruised through the relatively familiar streets to their nook. Rogue's voice broke him from his reverie before he got fully aqainted, "What're you smilin' about?"

A hand left the steering wheel to the wing window that laid between the windshield and his side window, pushing it outward to help catch an extra current of wind as it gave himself something to fiddle with for the moment before working the courage to speak, "You."

"What'd Ah do?" Her voice was somewhat filled with confusion but curious all the same.

Remy paused after her question dealing a hand of silence as he kept his attention on the right turn he quickly took. Being honest with Rogue was easy but not when it came down to personal things that could wound him emotionally. She was the one he could't break through to compared to the plethoa of women before her. He couldn't explain how Rogue, of all women he encountered daily, had an invisible grip on him but felt it grow tighter with every little thing she did, "Jus'... You."

She felt the heat grow on her cheecks from his cajun accent. He was growing on her, she could admit, but, not in a way she thought it would be. She had experienced a feeling similar to this in the past but nothing that made her feel stupid in her words when she spoke to Remy or when she refused to speak to save the judgement. She wasn't ignorant to Remy's affection and good-hearted nature when it revolved around her but chose not to admit the truth. It was only a matter of time for her to come to terms with her internal conflicts.

The moment the truck stopped on the side of a narrow road her brain lapsed to the flyer in her pocket causing her to lift from the seat to retrieve the paper before she forgot, "Ah found somethin' that might help..."

His hands unfolded the white paper reading the words carefully, "Might jus' be de answer I'm lookin fo'. Lookin' out fo' us, Chere. Appreciate it," Remy looked over to her as he pushed the gear shift into park then out to the house beyond her. "Check it out."

She saw him nod to something behind her and turned to see what he was staring at. Her eyes widened once she saw the old white house. She could determine it was pre-WWII which surged a giddy sensation through her limbs as she opened her door, "Its amazing, Remy!"

"Glad y' like it. People befo' us left de couch and de fridge so we good on dat. Next t'ing we gotta do is drive north to Ardmore fo' de beds. Couch is not happenin' fo' me."

Rogue would've jumped through the window if she wanted to run the risk of dealing cosmetic damage to the near-half century old truck but like a flash her passenger door flew open and stayed open as she jogged across the blades of grass to stand in front of the old house. Her eyes were filled with wonder, taking in as much as what her brain was willing to process. It was a nice house for its age with a feature she wished even the mansion had: a wrap around patio. Her feet took her to the steps that met the deck, bouncing up each one with little effort applied. The flat rubber of her Converse made no noise on the relatively young wood as she absorbed the images in front of her. It was just her in this world Remy put her in, just her and her thoughts. Mainly thoughts of Remy.

Rogue turned around to Remy, noticing he excluded himself from her as he stood in the grass beside the unpaved road. His broad back slouched into a lean to rest his forearms along the edge of the tailgate. She understood his absence from her side when she saw him take a drag of his smoke and exhale it into the breeze.

He was doing something to her, not directly but she could feel her attention hold on him more than what she wanted. Her entire opinion of Remy had made a total one-eighty, feeling the security she never expected to experience in his presence. She forgot what joy felt like until this ordeal hit the fan and she liked it. Her eyes were on him, watching everything he did from the way his forearms met the steel to the way his lips touched the cigarette. She couldn't understand the static she felt when he was around but had an idea... He looked back to her forcing Rogue to quickly avert her attention to something close by. She didn't want the man knowing her eyes were on him.

His cigarette dropped to the dirt beneath his feet to make his way up the grass were Rogue trekked but with a slower pace compared to the speed the mental pictures passed in his mind. Rogue herself was giving Remy a hard time in dealing with his own problems. He was making things worse for himself the more he thought about it. He was doing everything to make her happy and from what he could see, he was succeeding in that department. But when it came down to his own well being and making himself happy, he chose to suffer for a moment of Rogue's happiness. It felt like a revolving door in his mind. If he was to help himself, he could risk hurting Rogue causing the hurt to hit him or he could remain unhappy to see her smile. He had to think things through and figure out what he really wanted for himself before he wore his heart on his sleeve.

**NOOOOOO! Over already? Sorry... This sucker was going to be longer but I haven't been able to sit and write ALL WEEK so I cut it a little short. Lame. Things are going to unfold so gimme time, aight? That is, if you got it... Thanx for stickin' with me, y'all! Thank you, reviewers! I'm tryin' to please you guys and if I'm not delivering, let this bitch know :p Drop me a good word, peeps, plzzzz? Have a good'n! -HS**


	7. Chapter 7

**Thank you, peeps! Muchos gracias to my fellow spanish or spanglish speaking readers lol. You guys have been everything in keeping this going and again thank you! Sorry for the delay but sometimes I have to tend to life and I've been slackin' on my guitar practice because of this lol (not a fast typer :p) The next chapter shouldn't take very long to post so be expecting that soon. Enough of my crap, so here you go!**

**Disclaimer: Maybe in a parallel universe I might just own Marvel but no... Not happenin'. **

**Ch. 7- Think I'm In Love**

The morning air filled Remy's lungs as he opened the front door of their hideout to begin the day ahead of him. He took a deep breath before pushing the wooden screen door outward then closing the main door behind him. Paying little attention to the second, it slammed against the frame from the tough rusted springs. "Sorry, Rogue..." He spoke aloud as he made his way down the steps that led out into the grass, crossing it to the driveway where the truck was parked. The key ring spun on his middle finger with ease before opening the steel door, carefully ducking down to seat himself. He wasn't going to lie but he enjoyed the power Rogue's truck delivered. It felt like his bike only the truck had four wheels and lacked freedom on the open road.

It was a little after eight and already the heat was present causing Remy to dwell on the appraching hours and climbing temperatures. There was no breeze present and the humidity stuck to his skin that much worse. The key met the ignition then turned the switch over to turn on the radio while finishing the cigarette he sparked moments before in hopes to calm his nerves. The radio activated and the sound waves of Van Halen carried loudly through the speakers making Remy jump from the decibels immediately muting the music that played. Rogue must've left during the late hours after he fell asleep. She was the only person he knew that liked Van Halen but he didn't blame her for leaving, it was _her_ truck afterall.

Naturally his mind flocked to Rogue who seemed to be bothered by things as of late constantly glued to the things going on in her mind, which he didn't blame, either. Their first night in the quaint little establishment was a quiet one and felt uncomfortable down in his bones. She kept silent since yesterday afternoon and had no idea what had happened for her to exclude herself from his conversation. Was it something he did? Something he said? But then again, was it something he _didn't_ do? He couldn't figure an answer to solve the problem.

He remembered Rogue lying in the grass of the front yard staring at the stars as if it held the answers to her problems she desperately seeked. Her hands rested on her ribcage, fingers entwined as they moved to the rythm of her diaphragm. He couldn't help but watch her while she was content and in such a calm state, smoking his cigarette while he sat on the top step. Rogue was about addictive to watch as nicotine was to smoke.

The cherry on his cig began to burn the butt before he flicked it onto the rocky trail the wheels rested on. His thumb and forefinger went to the old style ignition on the dash, giving fire to the engine and setting his mind on the approaching events coming around the corner.

**O.o**

Remy took the road east leading him out of town away from the intertaste. The directions he obtained from the man who posted the 'help wanted' ad over the unreliable pay phone the day before seemed to be correct from what Remy could understand through the static. The same described landmarks passed immediately clicking something in his brain. He knew who the poster was. It was Sonny, the same kind man who welcomed the duo to Marietta. The turn he had to take was the same that ended their trip to this small town, driving past their camp site almost a half mile before the flat-black gates appeared in his sights. The solid white numbers on the gate matched the address he recieved.

As soon as he approached the gate, he shifted the gear on the column into park feeling the anxiety in his stomach growing with the thought of obtaining a job that didn't require his professional touch. It wasn't a job that would pay thousands in a matter of two hours worth of labor. Everything had to be legit for things to work the way he wanted them to.

His scarred hand took the silver handle, popping the latch in the the process. His hand then took the black door panel to push it outward. He looked down at the rocky dirt road before he swung his left leg out of the cab follwed by the right. He had to exit the truck slowly due to his height and managed to accomplish such a tiny task without being scathed. Remy observed the property before his eyes and a man appeared from behind a tractor while wiping his greasy hands on a grease rag.

Remy shut the heavy door with force and stood beside the El Camino as the man steadily paced himself toward the gate that divided them. A cigarette crossed his mind but fought off the urge, deciding to wait until the next possible smoke break.

"Hey there, stranger," Sonny's voice carried the twenty feet between them. The rag that wiped his hands now rested in his back pocket. "I understand you're here for a job, right?"

Remy nonchalantly approached the gate as Sonny's hands went for the gate latch, swinging it onto the property, "I reckon so if de position is still available."

"It is. When can you start, son?"

"How 'bout right now," a dimple formed on Remy's cheek as a smirk flashed across his face. He was serious about his plan, every bit of it. He crossed his arms over his chest leaning his head back a few inches as if he were intimidating the man.

Sonny crossed the border his gate was guarding holding a hand out to Remy, accepting the offer, "Welcome aboard, Royce! Glad you decided to give this ol' man some help around here." Their hands shook briefly before Sonny broke the pact, leading Remy onto the property before swinging the gate where it once rested. "Now, first day's gonna be a little easy but don't expect every day to be sunshine, lollipops and rainbows, got it?"

Remy nodded his head before speaking to his new boss, "Don' expect it t' be."

"Like your attitude, Royce. You remind me of my own son as a matter of fact. He never once told me no when it came down to manual labor, probably the hardest working man my family's bloodline produced, and thats sayin' a lot," Sonny couldn't help himself on reminiscing on his sons ghost the more he saw the young man before him.

"Where is yo' son, if y' don' mind me askin'?" Remy continued to follow Sonny's small talk along with the slow pace the man produced. His hands were knuckle deep in his pockets allowing his thumbs no restriction.

"Enlisted in the Marines about a year ago. Just started an eight month tour over seas... We harldy see him anymore and whats worse, we don't know where he is 'cause he can't disclose that information... Sorry, Royce this ol' man just misses his kid."

Remy kept quiet as the drew closer to the barn beside his employer's house. The words Sonny spoke replayed a few times as he began to feel his resentment of Jean-Luc return. He could've had a real fathers love had his adopted given him an ounce. Hell even a gram would've made Remy hate the man less than what he did now. He never believed fathers loved their children having witnessed the pain himself of not being wanted; a burden.

Remy shook his thoughts once the large barn door creaked from lack of grease, revealing everything he was going to set his hands on eventually. He wasn't going to lie but he was exctited he going to learn new ways to work his hands.

**O.o**

Rogue was forcefully yanked from the first pleasant dream she had in four days thanks to that Cajun. She laid face down in her brand new feather pillow with the sheet up to her shoulders to cover her bare skin from the ceiling fan directly above her. It felt great to sleep on a pillow top for the first time always having to reinforce her previous beds with egg crate padding. She thanked Remy once again. Her head rotated to switch the cheek she rested on, sinking into the white cotton pillow case as her body shifted to the side.

There was nothing Rogue wanted more than to be alone. Hopefully, if things go right for Remy, she would have the entire day to herself. She could only do things on foot since Remy had her truck. Typical male and their vehicle complex.

Since she was already awake, she felt no need in wasting the day away and dying of sheer boredom from lack of modern technology minus the stereo she bought at the pawn shop in Ardmore the day before. She sprang from the bed and pulled the last clean shirt she had over her head and dwelled the jeans she was reluctant to wear in the heat. Unless...

Rogue dashed into the kitchen, slipping across the hardwood in search of a knife or something of cutting value pulling each drawer lightly to avoid a catastrophe. The last one she opened contained a box-cutter which was an unexpected find hoping to just use a steak knife. She removed the find to inspect the blade, sliding the golden mechanism along the top to reveal the brand new blade. Score.

She hurried back to her quarters and removed the jeans for temporary purposes. The jeans laid flat across the bed, contemplating where is was she should cut. It wasn't a long standing decision before metal met cotton, slicing through the fabric like butter more than half-way up her thigh, "Much better!" She exclaimed aloud with the freedom of no Remy in her bubble. The former pair of jeans slid right back on giving Rogue the attire she lacked before, "Shoulda thought of this sooner." She wasn't going to miss an opportunity to catch some sun on her pale legs. Even with control of her powers though still in the process of perfection, it was a difficult task to put her mind through so much strain always staying on guard wearing skin revealing attire. With Remy on the other hand, she covered up because of his nature and what he was capable of. She was warming up to him but felt the heat in his presence. Everything he had done so far was for her and she knew that he branded himself an accessory to ensure safety and yet she couldn't imagine escaping with anyone else. She wanted to know why so much just for her. Rogue sat back down on her mattress completely lost in thought.

Dammit she was thinking about him... Again. Seemed to be occuring a lot more since their time together lengthened. His company was welcome at times having the same introverted and non-intrusive attitude, always willing to give her the space she needed without question. But there was something that made her think there was something wrong with _him_. He was never one to be selfish or talk about himself mainly choosing to listen an learn. What she claimed to have been _weird_ thoughts about Remy, those thoughts made her question her opinion of the man.

Rogue tried to shake him from her mind while reaching down for her solid black converse slipping the already tied shoes on her feet and straightened the tongues from bunching up. She got to her feet and left the room in haste needing a fresh change in scenery. Thunderous thuds sounded throughout the house as she crossed the living room to the kitchen where the back door resided. Her head turned to the stove reading the aqua green digital numbers displaying 8:52. The closer she got to the door, the more excited her heart grew in hoped of venturing into her own little frontier. The thin wooden door took no time in releasing Rogue into the wild.

**Another one bites the dust! Pow! Zip! Bam! Done. Snail speed progression sucks but hey, make like a bridge and get over it lol. Question, comments, concerns, hell even flames (hope not) feel free and drop me a line. And if you're musically savy, tell me WHO's song I referred somewhere in the chapter lol. I adore music badasses ;p Til next time! -HS**


	8. Chapter 8

**Hope y'all like it! Thank you reviewers and 'scribers you make my day evertime my phone blips with an email :p There's nothing I enjoy more than a serious moment between our favorite muties. This was the first chapter I wrote for this but with a hella bunch of mods, it ended up being numero huit. Joy! Got a little help with a home state hero of mine and personal favorite musician of the early rock n' roll movement :) Enjoy folks!**

**Ch 8- Everyday**

The roar of the El Camino killed the silence of the country side as the tires popped the rocks of the dirt strip they called a drive way. He noticed the front door open and the living room light glowing in the window against the rapid darkness sweeping the sky. The truck slowed to a halt before gripping the shifter on the column, pushing it up to the parking gear. The moment he turned the key off was when he felt his day end with satisfaction.

The springs of the wooden screen door squealed once Remy pulled it toward himself. His first day of hard labor at the Albernathy's farm was over and to his surprise the house smelled of something magical; a home cooked meal. There was something behind Rogue's gesture but didn't have the slightest idea why.

"Rogue?" Remy called placing a hand on the frame to support his balance as his free hand removed the boots one after the other. The socks were soon to follow giving his feet some time to breathe.

The music of Buddy Holly came from the living room in which he decided to check first. His feet touched the cool hardwood floor making him relax instantly. The few steps it took to reach the living room felt like forever on his tired feet. Once he saw she wasn't where he thought, his voice called out again, "Rogue?" There were no other sounds of movement but went with his gut instinct to check outside.

He turned to go through the kitchen straight to the back door. Sure as hell the back light was on and the door was open with the screen door closed, "Sneaky girl." The aromas filled his senses as he passed through causing his stomach to talk and mouth salivate. He pressed on to find Rogue despite his hunger, closing the distance to the screen door giving it a slight push enough to swing open. "Dere y' are!" He took the step down to get out onto the lawn where Rogue sat as the short blades of grass pricked his bare feet.

"Here Ah am," Rogue sat cross-legged in a white plastic lawn chair facing the door, giving off a small smile. The cut-offs she wore earlier were replaced with full length jeans as a way to keep Remy from catching sight of skin she refused to show, "Where else would Ah be? Cain't you smell the chicken Ah got cookin'?" She couldn't help but laugh at him. Not with him but at him. "So how was your day?"

Remy shrugged at her question as grabbed the back of a nearby lawnchair bringing it closer to hers before taking a seat, "Long and tiring. If y' couldn't tell I got de job."

"I figured that much after about two hours of you not comin' back. How'd it go?" Rogue looked down at her jeans, picking at the frayed strings that bordered the hole in the knee.

"T'ink I'm gonna like workin' dere, Rogue. Its a different world out in de yard. Deres peace and quiet next to de smell of cow crap but I'm sure I'll get used to it."

"Cow crap's the best part," she laughed again at his words. Rogue's eyes beamed enthusiasm as a genuine smile crossed her face, "Thats good to hear, Sugah! I'm excited for you!"

One side of Remy's mouth curled in self satisfaction, "Its weird to admit but, startin' a relatively honest livin' feels great and this is where I t'ink I should've been. Here, I don' have to watch my back or worry about winding up in a ditch because I pissed someone off. My past was filled wit' dark shadows and bullet rounds which was no place for a youth t' grow up in. I dunno how I managed t' survive on de streets looking back now. Dat was my home until I joined you and de X-Men six months ago and I have no intentions of going back. Dis is where I _want _to be. Guess what I'm tryin' to say is, I'm feeling liberated."

Remy hadn't said much of anything about himself the last few days and it surprised her when he did, especially something so honest in his passed life though she put nothing on the table about hers. She was pulled from her thoughts when she felt him slap her thigh with playful force using the back of his hand, "What's on yo' mind, girl?"

She shook her head trying to blow him off, "Nothin' much, Rems."

"'Nothin' much'?" Remy questioned. "Sure, ok. I can read you like a book, Chere, and you can't lie to me. As much as you don't like me, you should figure I'm de only company you have. Non Chaton. No Jean Gennie. No Logan. You shouldn't hold all that weight on your shoulders alone."

Her eyes met his once more after a moment of contemplation though she was hestitant about speaking her mind to the man that warmed her heart, "Someone's dyin' thoughts ping through mah head ALL DAY everyday and Ah cain't shake 'em. You didn't see me, Remy. Ah got to see mahself killin' that kid through his eyes. It wasn't me that killed him, it was a monster. Somethin's wrong with meh and Ah have to figure it out before Ah go back to New York, with_ or _without you." Rogue could sense the tears forming in the sides of her eyes once she spoke her revelation but she whispered the last of her input, giving emotion in her words, "They wont leave meh alone, Remy."

He hadn't the faintest clue as to what he should say dealing with a woman who could take anything the wrong way, "I'm sorry I wasn't dere fo' ya but my hands were full too. He should've learned not t' put his hands on a lady anyways or at least not de wrong one. You ain't no monster, Rogue. If you were, den you'd be one sexy monster." His smile was infectious even to Rogue in which she reciprocated the gesture, placing a lock of silver behind her ear.

"The part that hurts the most was he was thinkin' about his mother right before Ah felt him go black within my conciousness. It's somethin' you'll never understand even if you wanted to," her eyes were locked onto his reading the concern behind them.

"Dat's de t'ing, Rogue, I _don't_ understand, even if I tried but I can't if you won't let me," he bent forward to get closer to her as he rested his elbows on the top of his knees. "I'm here 'cause y' need someone t' understand you and every'ting goin on in dat head of yours. I's not healthy keepin' dat stuff bottled up only to make you suffer inside... I've noticed you've withdrawn yourself and I don't blame you. " Remy's thought was cut off when he realized he had his hand on hers. He pulled away nonchalantly for the cigarettes in his work-shirt's front pocket, looking up beneath his brow to see any kind of reaction as he shook the pack pretending to get a better count of what he had left, "Sorry, Chere."

She hid the warm feeling from within her chest but couldn't help a smile to break the tension, "Don't be sorry, Sugah. Ah cain't help that you care so much and you should know by now that Ah'm not much of an 'emotional' talker... But when Ah'm ready to _talk _talk, Ah'll let you know." Her arms crossed over her chest from the cool summer night enjoying a moment of silence to collect her thoughts. "There is one thing Ah wanna tell you... A secret if you will."

A cigarette went to his lips before lifting the flap of the pocket with his forefinger then slipping the half empty pack into his pocket. He was interested by the look of his curious eyes glowing in her direction. She didn't share much with him when it came to her personal life, hell he didn't even know her birthday.

Rogue took a few seconds to figure out the words she wanted to speak, "I want you to know something about me not even Xavier knows, even though I know he does but hasn't said anything. Not even Miss Kitty Pyrde knows, either"

"Really? What is it, Chere?" He was getting antsy being able to discover confidential information.

She stared directly into his glowing irises, feeling the hypnotic effect they had on her soul. "Its mah birth name, Remy." Her eyes diverted as she worked the courage to expell the truth, "Cain't believe Ah'm actually telling you this..." She could see behind his calm facade that he was extremely curious as she looked straight back into his glowing orbs as an attempt on shattering his composure. She didn't want to lose this battle she knew they fought, hoping he would fall to her first. She was an old fashioned girl with older set of morals and at this point, she was going to leave it that way, "My name _is_ Anna. Anna-Marie."

Remy stared in disbelief as the unlit smoke fell from his lips, realizing Rogue saw it as well. She was starting to open up to him and it felt... _Amazing_. He bent down to pluck the cigarette from the blades of grass listening to his heart race uncontrollably in his ears blocking out the sounds of the abuntant crickets around them. He had to collect himself internally before adding his two cents, "What made you tell me this, Rogue?" He _had_ to light a tension reliever taking the lighter from the same pocket as the small box of smokes immediately striking the fire to the end of his Marlboro.

"Ah think you have the right to know, Remy. Why should'nt you know? You've done so much for me this past week and there's nothing Ah can do to help... Ah cain't even get a job unless Ah wanna blow our cover and-" Her sentence was cut off by Remy's soft voice over hers which began to sound stressed.

"Remy don' care what you can and can't do, Rogue. D'accord? You're my friend and nothing's gonna change dat. You've done a lot for me in de past which got me to join your team. My life was spiraling down de drain until dat day when you called on Xaviers behalf asking if I wanted to consider a spot in de institute. If you never did dat, den who knows how shitty my life would be right now... Just consider it pay back, please? Don' beat yourself up over what I'm doin' fo' _you_."

His words struck her brain, staying in place. She remembered Xavier saying he was looking for new recruits and Rogue wasn't hesitant about dropping Remy's name. It had been four years since their encounter on the train but knew his skills would be an asset though she disliked him as a person. The more she saw him on the premises passing by, his personality was more abundant and noticed how well he managed to get along with the others while dodging the underaged girls chasing him. She thought it was funny how they all wanted _that_ guy and strangely she understood why.

The air between them felt tense causing Rogue to leave her seat leaving Remy with his words and her ghost. His smoke hit the ground immediately leaping to his feet to follow her. He wasn't letting her run from him anymore now that she opened pandoras box.

She heard his footsteps approach her spot as she pulled the entree from the oven, placing it on the stove tops back burners, "They're done, Sugah."

Remy's salavatory glands worked to the smell of what Rogue prepared. This is the world he could get used to, coming home to a woman he was falling in love with.

**I've been waiting to post this since I started typin' this sucker and its here! lol I'm almost as giddy as when I'm waiting to leave work to hit the comic shop on Wednesdays. I PROMISE THE AWESOME ROMY GOODNESS IS AROUND THE CORNER (all caps rage! jk) I apologize in advance if my forthcoming updates take longer than usual because I'm having to be baby DM for almost two weeks after next while my boss is on vacay so I'm not gonna have my afternoons to write BUT not entirely with the help of my handy-dandy Sidekick lol Please do that thang called 'REVIEW' 'cause you know you want to. Anyways I'm outies! -HS**


	9. Chapter 9

**Bla-dow! Thank you, thank you, y'all! Love the support you guys give! Not much from me this time but heres something for you to enjoy for a few minutes lol**

**Ch 9: All Your Life**

Remy arrived at the house only to find it unoccupied aside from himself. He knew Rogue couldn't've gone far and knew she wouldn't leave without her truck. She had ample opportunities to sneak off but he had the finances to back up the trip.

It was an easy day for Remy and his tired muscles the moment Sonny issued him a personal check for the few days of hard labor and the early dissmissal of him saying 'Spend some time with your wife and I'll see you on Monday.' It was partially true, indeed wanting to spend some time with Rogue since she started talking more about her past and things she wants from the futrue at hand.

He wanted to do some thing nice for Rogue but hadn't the slightest idea as to what. He pulled the check from his front pocket and tried to figure out a way to cash it. The thought left him at a stand-still and laid it on top of his pillow for further convenience. The dirt covered work shirt was unbuttoned one at a time and thrown to the floor until laundry day. His attention went back to Rogue wondering where she could venture off to.

She mentioned traveling the back woods during dinner the day he started work. That one conversation alone gave him the notion she was back there and he needed an opinion as to what they should do to spend the evening. With little reguard as to wearing a shirt, he took off through the halls and out the back door and entered the forestry. The shade cooled his upper body from being adjusted to the a/c. He had no idea where to start looking but pressed on with high hopes. He inspected the ground for tracks which helped a little in few sections.

In the distance he heard the sounds of flowing water which he had no idea there was anything like this behind the house. He crept across the cracked dirt keeping a steady pace then slowed once he heard water splashing. His brow furrowed as he got closer to the sounds origin. In the short distance, he could see the clearing where the trees ended and the water began.

He heard another splash, an abmormal one. He was curious now as his feet took him to the edge, moving into the trees to stay out of view in case he was on someone else's property. His hands moved twig-like branches from his sight as he spotted Rogue in the calm pool the creek made. Her back was facing him and he could see something was missing. As soon as she lifted her hands to wipe the drenched locks of hair from her face, he caught a glimpse of what made her a woman causing his heart to pound vigorously as if his chest were to explode. He couldn't take his eyes off of her curves that ran all the way down to where the water cut his view off at her covered waistline.

There was no way in frozen hell he was going to interrupt her swim and expose his almost-stalking actions. He was stuck between staying to witness a sin or leaving to keep from going insane. The confusion caused him to bite his bottom lip the more his eyes scanned every inch. It was moments like this he realized why it was _her_ that made him come unglued.

Remy slowly released the branches to avoid exposure following the path he took grinning from ear to ear all the way back to the house.

**O.o**

Rogue slipped into her room seeing as her truck was home, closing the door behind her with no noise. Her hair was fairly damp though her clothes dried having to put them back on still covered in water. A knock quickly followed once Remy noticed her door that was once open is now closed, "I know you're in dere. I need your opinion on something."

She opened it with little time lapse eyes locked on his, "What's up, Remy?"

It took him a second to gain composure after what he shouldn't've seen, "Well, I, uh, was wonderin' if y' wanted t' go out fo' dinner or some'ting. You haven't had de chance to get out de house de past few days and I feel terrible 'bout it. Kinda itchin' t' get out myself."

"Yeah, sure. Gotta take a shower first if you don't mind," Rogue was thrilled to go into town an get out of her exiled prison.

"Love, I have all night," he smiled at her declaration as he felt confidence grow deep in his soul mixed with passion and intrigue.

**O.o**

It was a quarter to eight when they arrived at a local bar and grill with a quiet scene and shortage of people. Remy could sense Rogue was apprehensive as she stiffened upon entering the premises, snaking his hand around her shoulders for support. It was a flashback as the hostess seated them in a booth surrounded by empty tables.

They sat across from one another, both silent beneath the low wattage lighting. Remy kept his eyes on the menu though Rogue held her attention to the scarce couples on the worn wooden dance floor.

Before Rogue could get completely absorbed in the older country song she hardly recognized that played from the speakers above, their waitress made eye contact with her requesting their beverages of choice then walked off once they came to a decision.

"So what's been up with you?" Rogue blurted out to strike his attention.

Remy's eyes stared wide at her question as he popped his head up from the menu, "What?"

Her arms crossed on top of the table, challenging him with a seroious glare, "Ah didn't stutter, Cajun."

Remy hesitated on breaking eye contact as he closed the menu and laid it flat on the table. He was relieved when the waitress set their drinks in front of them before stepping away to give them more time to choose amongst the garganuan selection. By the time he looked back to her, her attenetion was on the straw she tore from the thin paper liner and dipped it in her cherry coke, index finger covering the opening of the straw. He laughed to himself when he realized he already began to memorize insignificant habits such as this.

She spoke up whether Remy was going to answer or not, "Just wonderin' if you're ok. You've been distant and Ah haven't seen much of you outside of work... Surprised Ah got to see you tonight."

"Guess we're not too different, I'd say. Just like you, I tend t' have problems dat need dealin' wit'," Remy input his words before he sipped his Sprite while staring at her as she scanned the menu.

Before he could divert his sight, Rogue lifted her head catching his red irises on accident, "Thought Ah felt someone starin' at meh."

"Sorry," Remy mumbled kicking himself in the head for making himself known, if she didn't already.

Rogue was always attentive to any genre of music playing in an establishment especially when it was a song that she always placed on any eghties-favorites list. A familiar beat from a bass drum struck a nerve in her system when she recognized it being Robert Palmer. "Dance with meh."

Remy was shocked when he took in the statement. Dance? "Two left feet, Chere." His arms crossed over his chest and sank into the vinyl seats.

"Please, Remy? Just this one song," Rogue wasn't going to let him escape any kind of fun that could easily be their last.

His arms uncrossed as he slid along the seat followed by an eager Rogue. He was just going to follow her and how she moved to this older type of music. There were two middle-aged couples already dancing before they joined in. Rogue slipped her hand into his as they took the two steps onto the floor and led him to the back of the dancing space where fewer eyes could peer. She faced him completely avoiding any sort of eye contact as she took his other hand and placed it upon her waist. "Jus' follow mah lead, sugah."

He swallowed hard to keep his voice from cracking, "Ok."

He felt like an idiot trying to do what Rogue wished but dancing wasn't a skill he had aquired, yet. With repetition, the steps she showed him began to make sense but not fully, having to apologize everytime he stepped on her toes by taking steps too early or losing count completely. Rogue would mumble but kept her cool with his mistakes having felt the same in the past when she learned the slow dance she was now teaching Remy.

The song ended before he had the steps memorized though Rogue visually expressed she enjoyed the clumsy dance they shared. He released her from his hold taking his attention to the others who continued to sway into the next song, "Sorry you didn't enjoy it. Told you I had two left feet."

"Whatever. You just need practice, Sugah. Kurt was worse than you, believe meh. Let's try it again," Rogue grabbed his hand that he tried to shake.

"You said ONE song, ma'am, not two," Remy was looking for a way out but highly doubted there was any possibility for escape the way Rogue took him by force.

"Ah lied," her hand was tight around his, restraining him from returning to their empty table. "Please, Remy?"

Remy hated the effect she had on him as it forced him to continue doing something he strongly disliked just for her sake. He inhaled sharply then exhaled slowly meeting her gaze in defeat, "D'accord, ma cherie." His hand brought her close to him feeling the adrenaline pump through his legs causing his knees to grow weak under his weight. As soon as Rogue made contact his other hand planted itsself on her lower back to close the mere inches that separated them, meeting his other arm to swallow her in an embrace. Remy took the lead as he applied his new found knowledge to prove to Rogue he wasn't fully incompetant when it came to rythm.

She held onto the back of his dress shirt with both handsas she took in the scents of Remy's sweet cologne. The aromas alone were enough to make her head spin next to the warmth his body produced gently placing her forehead on his rock-hard pectoral. His sways were hypnotic the more she rocked to his lead causing the thoughts in her head to go haywire.

Without thinking twice, his hand went to the back of her head just to take the moment to touch her, to hold her closer than he ever had the chance to. Fighting her off was on a thin line regardless as to what repercussions he could face if he made the wrong move, still not removing his hand.

He lead them into the third song, a current country hit which Rogue knew too well. The symolism of the song made her heart beat uncontrollably as the opening lyrics filled her ears with a young womans voice. She released his shirt from her grip to wrap her arms around his neck causing him to lean down due to his tall stature where his ear was parallel to hers. She was intimidating him from her close distance and change of heart.

Rogue released her bind after a few short moments pulling back til it was just her hands on the sides of his neck and locked her eyes on his, "Remy..."

His voice was low and suave as they caressed her ears, "Oui?"

Her heart was racing at a thought that was beginning to sound better and better the more she thought about it. Not once in her life did she ever have to make a decision so rash and hasty than the one she had to make now, "Kiss meh."

He blinked a few times with a hard swallow at her request hoping to a higher power she wasn't playing a cruel joke on him until her voice cut through his internal quandery, "Please."

His hands went to her cheeks as if she were a faberge egg he were to steal. Nerves were on edge as his tongue moistened his lips leaning his head down slowly to conceal how much he wanted her; how much he loved her. He could feel her lose breath the moment his lips touched hers in an innocent fashion. This was something new for his love and he was going to do his best to not make her feel rushed or used. She inhaled sharply for air supply as she kissed him back with more force than he put forth pulling him closer to her with lips full of aggression. There was no chance in hell he could resist the passion he held for Rogue, moving his left hand to clutch onto her long wavy locks as he kissed her with as much power she did if not more to taste the sweetness of her mouth.

Rogue released her lips from his as a result of lack of oxygen and from overheating. Her chest semi-heaved and couldn't help but grin when she met his playful eyes, hands now resting on his chest. She felt his heart beat out of control under her right hand which was almost in sync with hers. She stood on the tips of her toes to plant one soft kiss on his unexpectant lips then removed her hands from his body as she turned to walk off the floor. There was no doubt she was redder than her grandmother's sun ripened tomatoes because of him. Her feet left Remy where he stood as she rushed into the only place he wasn't allowed to go: the ladies room.

The bright lighting did nothing to hide the blush from herself in the reflection before her. Her hand turned the cold water on instantly cupping the cool liquid in her hands before it touched her heat stricken face. His kiss was beyond her expectations thinking she was finally ready for his advances though obviously not. Her dominant hand waved the paper towel dispenser until the towel was nearly two feet in length, ripping it in haste. The oils from her skin were removed leaving a cool sensation before her face warmed to its proper temperature. She wasn't ready to face Remy, not in the slightest but there was no choice.

She left the restroom feeling sheepish knowing his devilish eyes were on her as she could see in her sights. He was back in his same spot in the booth, sipping his Sprite with his illuminated eyes on her approaching figure all they way 'til she took her seat, even then he couldn't release her from his vision. The glass was set back on the napkin it was served with remaining quiet in hopes of Rogue breaking the silence. He kept his attention on her, unwilling to shake the newly made memories of her and himself. He could see her smile had yet to fade from the minutes passing by but it was Rogue who broke the silence, "You wanna leave? Kinda lost my appetite... Not in a bad way, that is..."

Rogue kept her eyes on him like he did with her, feeling Remy's hand on her from across the table, "Whatever you want, Chere." He slid across the vinyl once more before getting to his feet, reaching for the wallet in his back pocket and carelessly tossed a twenty between the glasses of soda. His hand stretched out for hers to help her to her feet although she was fully capable, he felt the need to be chivalrous whether she liked it or not. There was no hesitation in Rogue taking his hand, gripping it for leverage to scoot along the seat. Her Converse touched the floor still holding on to his much larger hand and she had no plans of letting go. He led her the way they came only to smell a strong odor of dirt mixed in the air as they approached the exit, taking hold of the handle and pulled it toward them revealing the downpour. Remy hand shuffled through his front pocket amongst the change in search of her keys to be ready.

Rogue's hand was still firmly held in his as they ran into the gully washer with Remy taking the lead due to his longer legs. Staying dry by running faster was a moot point as they both were pelted with the same amount of raindrops. Their hands separated as soon as they met the El Camino, both sets of hands slammed on the doors scurrying to open them. Remy was the first to enter the cab followed by a panting Rogue who laughed to break the silence, "Ah must look lahk a wet rat." Her hands seared through her hair to remove the wet locks from her view.

Remy inserted the key into the igntition turning the key to the right, listening to the starter send fire to the distributor. Rogue could see the windows fog up from their heat instantly sliding the original knob to the right to circulate the air. She was nervous being aound Remy though she knew he wouldn't try anything stupid but it was herself that she didn't trust. Remy was her only companion for the time being and vice versa, realizing what they had would progress into something much more along the path they started to walk down. She wanted time to tell if they could stand the test of time, hoping they wouldn't rush into something so juvenile.

The bar and grill they visited was less than two miles from their house; two miles of brutal silence. The white house was inviting to them both like any home should be. Remy shifted the gears into park and killed the engine before taking a deep breath, "Anna..." He said nothing more as his hand went behind her neck, pulling her face to his but felt her give in as she slid closer across the benchseat. He placed his lips on hers, sliding his tongue on her upper lip between kisses. She taught him how to dance now it was his turn to teach her to kiss.

Her energy was surging as her kisses grew more curious and demanding with her chest beating beyond anything she ever experienced. Their breathing became erratic with the sexual tension in the truck and hands explored one another throughout the most passionate kiss they shared so far. Lucky for her, Remy had no intentions of ruining what he had going between them to pursure anything more than the simple joys of kissing. He was content with the direction they took having siezed the moment and the woman he was in love in his arms

**Wham! Bam! Thank you, ma'am! 'Bout time I got something goin' like this! R&R, yo! Later, squares! jk -HS**


	10. Chapter 10

**Could the reviews been any better? Uh, I think not! You guys were fantastic, hell, phenominal! Guess the last chapter was rad after all :p Thank you ten fold for the support and those silent readers who drift across my typings. Y'all make my day every time. **

**Also, I'm still getting used to ppl reading my stuff so its written how my brain projects the story and I apologize in advance if this chapter effs with your head. BAM!**

**Disclaimer: I'll own Marvel when pigs fly... Let me know when you see one, I'll split the royalties with ya ;D**

**Ch 10: Bad Moon Rising**

"Where the hell are you?" A high pitched voice echoed through the hall of the women's dormitories causing neighboring doors to crack open for the inhabitants to see the super pissed off Kitty Pryde. She was usually a passive person, never being one to fly off the handle but when a situation like this occurs, sometimes being passive could kiss her ass. "What do you mean you can't tell me? You've been gone for a-"

Kitty stood in the middle of the hall completely oblivious to the on-lookers around her after being cut off by her missing friend. She looked up to make eye contact with Amara, the first person she noticed. The younger girl ducked back in her room hoping she didn't add on to Kitty's anger.

"So, what, you can't call? Rogue, you have Logan stressing out enough that he's gone as far as Virginia looking for you. And fyi, when he sees Gambit, he's not going to take it easy on the guy," she was beyond annoyed, pinching the bridge of her nose with her thumb and forefinger. Rogue's call was the cherry on top after instructing a defense-based tutorial in the Danger Room to teenagers who were more interested in their friends around them than what Kitty had to instruct. "This isn't some sort of hoop Gambit has you jumping through is it?"

Rogue stood beside the pay phone with her head hung low as she was submissive to Kitty's rage. The phone stayed in her dominant hand with her elbow resting on the building she stood in front of while her other hand dipped into her front pocket, "No, Kit, Ah got us into this mess, he got us away from it. And if you're wonderin', yes Ah'm okay."

Kitty took the call into her room having to manually open the door in fear of ruining her expensive new phone, "I'm sorry, Rogue. You had me freaked out with your one-time voicemail so _excuse_ me for being a little peeved." She paused after her minor apology to collect less heated thoughts. "He hasn't tried anything stupid, has he?"

"Remy's behavin', for the most part," she couldn't keep a smile from appearing on her face remembering the countless kisses she shared with him. "Ah'm not scared to flip the switch on him if needed and so far, so good."

Rogue paused, waiting for Kitty to retort though her line stayed quiet. The phone switched hands as she began to speak again, "Kit... Ah don't plan on comin' home, if Ah can even call it that anymore. This thing Ah have goin' on here is how Ah want to ride out the rest of mah freedom. Ah dunno, you'd just have to be here to understand."

"This is about Remy, ain't it?" Kitty stood in the middle of her room in complete shock as she assumed the motive behind Rogue refusing to return to the institute. She waited for a lie but silence remained giving her reason to think Rogue hung up, "Oh my God, Rogue! What the hell is wrong with you?" Kitty's free arm waved in the air to emphasize her anger toward her friend who was unaware of her actions.

"There's nothin' goin' on, Kitty," calling her by her full nickname was a sign of seriousness toward her friend. She never had a reason to lie to her but she needed to cut the details for her own sake. "Give the guy some slack, please? Remy's done a lot to help meh and Ah shouldn't be the only one who appreciates his actions... Shit could be worse, Kit."

Kitty took a seat on the unkept bed she shared with Piotr, "I know and I do appreciate him on a small degree. It's just... I don't want to see my best friend getting tangled up with the wrong guy and left heartbroken because of him. If anything, be rational like you always are by thinking things through..."

Rogue felt choked from the emotion she wanted to express to her friend but cared not to cause a scene, "Ah gotta keep it short, Kit, so Ah'm gonna have to say bye for now. Ah'm sorry everyone is pissed and worried about us but I'll do mah best to keep in touch from now on, okay?

Kitty wiped a tear before it fell as she said good-bye to her best friend of six years. It was a difficult task to accomplish before the call duration blipped on the screen as the call ended. There was no number to reach her back at so waiting for Rogue to call was going to difficult as well. There was no reason to judge Rogue's judgement on her well-being even if she had to convince herself that Remy wasn't on the wrong end of the line being with her as opposed to the New Orleans incident.

She snapped out of her reverie tossing her phone onto the bed before she phased through the door, "Logan!"

Kitty flew down thick carpeted stairs making a u-ie once her feet landed the last step then charged through the kitchen and out the garage door. She hadn't the slightest idea where he could be but his Harley was his best friend and he was usually covered in grease on the daily. "Logan?" She called out observing the massive door of the three-car garage lifted to absorb the natural light. Her pointer finger slid along the body of an exotic foreign car she would never know the name of as she walked closer to where the ratchet sounds were coming from.

"Yeah, half-pint, what's on your mind," Logan failed to make eye contact as his attention remained on the carburatur he was in the process of removing.

"Rogue called," there wasn't much else to add, just being straight forward and to the point.

The clicks of the ratchet stopped and he immediately looked to Kitty, "What'd she say? Where is she?"

"She wouldn't say, Logan, I tried already and... She said she's not coming home or at least not anytime soon."

A vein in Logan's temple flared in rage, "She's in cahoots with gumbo..." His bottom lip protuded in a snarl thinking about things that could potentially or could've already happened.

"I don't know. She's not boy crazy like I am, I would know. There's something going on of course but she agreed to leave with him, Logan. Who knows what the law is going to do to them both if they're caught before we find them. She killed someone... There's word on the news of Sentinels being deployed in the more conservative-mutie hating states like New York, Alabama, Florida, Oklahoma and Virginia to name a few. We need someone to operate Cerebra so we can locate Rogue before shit literally hits the fan."

"I think we would've already tried that if there _was_ someone-anyone, half-pint. Charlie's off the map as far as I'm concerned and there's been no word from Jean. We don't even know if the Shi'arr Empire has her detained with her connection to the Phoenix," Logan's words stopped as soon as his ratchet regained pace, loosening the bolt enough to twist with his fingers. "Knowing she's alive and breathin's enough to hold on to for the time bein' until she's found and let me tell you, they're going to wish the Feds got to them instead of me."

**O.o**

Rogue sat behind the wheel elated she finally got the chance to hear Kitty's voice. The engine roared at low rpms as the automatic transmission shifted down to second as she made a turn toward the home she was slowly getting used to. The wheels continued to rotate across the muddy road from last night's thunderstorm causing her excitement to grow more and more the closer she drove her old truck. Trees that over-looked her were going to make the road dry more slowly and Rogue was thrilled in a sarcastic fashion having the thought of washing the truck more than what she wanted to but the paint job wasn't cheap.

It felt like ages since the last time her hands were aquainted to the wheel and had control of its raw power beneath her right foot. She wanted to drop the gear into first and gun it but with logical thinking and muddy roads in the same equation, that wasn't the best of ideas.

She had no clue as to what the time was but from the position the sun held in the sky, it had to be between eleven and noon. Before she knew it, the little white house appeared as the distance was erased and the mileage tacked on the odometer. The mileage grew quickly since the beginning of the trip, allowing herself to mentally round-house kick herself in the head as the resale value dwindled.

Rogue felt the excitement flow through her as the plan of making a visit to Lake Murray was closer to execution with every yard she drove. Beside her rested a new swim suit which the term seemed redundant for the lack of fabric it wasn't made with. She was apprehensive about wearing little to nothing around him but knew he couldn't physically harm her with the help of her poisonous skin. Driving into Gainesville, Texas was nerve racking considering her truck still had New York plates adorned on the front and back. Her identity was nothing to worry about with the help of Kurt's stolen image inducer, which she had already chewed Remy out when she opened the glove compartment finding the technology instead of candy confections during their cross-country adventure.

The truck rolled to a stop in front of the house, pushing the shifter on the column towards the roof after the squeaks from condensation on the brake shoes subsided. The brake system was original from the day it rolled off the assembly line in 1967, twenty-two years before she was a twinkle in her parents eyes. Installing a completely new brake system was supposed to have been her and Logan's next project but, by the outlook on things, that was a shot to Mars which shot to her heart in return. She was homesick but if it weren't for Remy being her rock, she would've booked back to her home up north sooner than her recent revelation.

The plastic white bag crinkled in her hand as she tightly gripped it. Both Converse met the mud, giving her support to stand. The door was shut peacefully to reduce the sound of metal-on-metal once the latch met the rod it connects to. Her feet took her around the front of the truck to walk up the lawn that desperately needed a trim as the cloth on her shoes absorbed the precipitation that remained. The few steps she approached were nothing to climb compared to the ones at the Xavier Institute she had religiously conqured everyday.

The screen door flung open with ease as did the front door that kept her from the inside. Once she entered the aged confines, she heard Remy's deep voice coming from a room in the back of the house beside hers though her door was shut. She couldn't understand his French tongue minus a few words here and there but it sounded like he was talking to himself. She tip-toed closer to his door the more she listened doind her best to tune into his voice. He spoke fluidly of his other language but even she could understand a foreign word in terms of 'amour', feeling her heart beat with a quicker pace rethinking the swim suit she bought. His words grew louder as he was drawing closer to the door she spied next to.

She made a dash for her own door to avoid blowing her cover as she made herself seen, "Dere y' are. Wonderin' if y' took off for Mexico or somet'ing. What you 'ave dere?"

"Oh, uh... Just somethin' for the lake. You'll see," she was nervous around him to say the least, reaching for the door knob to her room giving it a quick twist and entered the quarters then shut the door behind her. After the events of last night, she couldn't do enough to keep from losing complete control of herself around him. She remembered falling asleep to the sounds of raindrops pelting against the window above his bed and his breathing mixed with her own with an arm stretched over his rising and falling diaphragm. She wasn't used to the feeling of waking up next to a man, Remy Lebeau for that matter but it filled her with content.

The minutes passed before she hesitantly stepped out of the room with her cut-offs and her black Beach Boys shirt with the sleeves rolled up. The hallway was dark enough to be elusive in sight but she had already made herself known once the bedroom door shut behind her. She rounded the corner into the kitchen to quench her thirst though spotted Remy in the living room to her left ready in one of his white under shirts and a pair of workout shorts she recognized from previous DR sessions. "Did you change in here or somethin'?"

"Oui. I left my clothes on de couch and, well, you were in dere..." Remy whistled after his words drifted followed by a grin as he saw her choice of clothing.

"I'm ready to roll when you are, Sugah," a hand went for a Solo cup that rested behind the cabinet door that was closed quickly just be followed by the refrigerator to pour some cold brewed sweet tea.

"D'accord, Cherie," his smile refused to disappear since he caught view of her legs which were covered up ninety-nine point nine percent of the time. "Where de keys?"

Rogue set the cup on the counter once the tea was depleted then reached into her pocket to retrieve the keys, giving them a slight jingle to gain his attention, "Ah'm drivin'."

**Not much in this chapter aside from Logan's getting involved (wink, wink) You'll understand that in time lol. Sentinels? Freaky machines, I tell you. When I was reading the Schism series, there was this part when a Sentinel was approaching Cyclops' island of Utopia when Scott and Logan were arguing... Gave me chills 'cause it reminded me of the Machines from the Terminator movies which freaked me out as a child but I love them nonetheless to this day. Sentinels and Machines. Sorry for an update, folks. My work week was hell in a taco shell lol and now it should be back to normal, hopefully. Questions, comments, concerns? Tell me, please? I gotta know what y'all think! Dying to know :P Thanx again everyone! -HS**


	11. Chapter 11

**I'm back and with a new name! I promise I'm not treating this like Myspace lol... I literally wrote this bitch 4 times... Yes, four. Once on the comp, then to paper after the mishap, then BACK to the comp after it was 'fixed' and THEN it took a dump on my favorite version *tear* and now we're here... My comp crashed twice in the matter of, what, a week? I think so... but anywho I seriously want to chuck this thing off a bridge since its making my updates irregular... So now I invested in a flash drive to keep the shinannigans from happening one-mo'-'gian lol UUUHHHGGGGHHHH dammit... Back to reality and enough of my bitching lol Thank you reviewers! You honestly don't know how privilaged I feel when you invest your time in giving me a pat on the back. Seriously. More importantly, I'm stoked to see how much traffic my story has! Oh mylanta, yes! Thank you!**

**Disclaimer: Is there a band called The Disclaimers? If not, I'm toadally ownin' that shit. Oh yeah, I don't own the characters since I'm lame and invest my life in being a full time fangirl lol.**

**Ch 11: Let My Love Open The Door (To Your Heart)**

The deep blue Rogue had her eyes on definately made her heart soar with delight with the prospect of exploring the man-made lake. The sky added its perfect blend of contrast against the body of water as well as the speckles of white sunlight that tipped the tiny waves the breeze produced. She stood at the edge of where the granules of sand met the untamed blades of grass ten yards away from the water's edge, shoes hooked on two of her fingers of her right hand with the other serving as a visor to sheild her eyes from the mid-day sun. The heat, for once, was welcoming as it played its part to keep the more shallow waters a cool degree which Rogue was in the debate of running into.

The water was inviting wanting everything to leap in and osmose into the void and forget about everything and care about nothing. She bit her bottom lip in thought since the rolling waters played a role in her freeing her mind of what she wanted, except Remy, the man she grew emotionally terrified of. His kisses made her question why she fought him off and it didn't help that she wanted last night's kiss to happen, having kissed him back with almost as much need.

She stashed the hand that fell from her eyes into her front pocket, never taking her thoughts away from Remy. Her head turned to her left viewing adults her age or maybe a little older laughing and enjoying their day in the sun to release the pressures of work or possibly family issues. The game of chicken they started seemed like fun considering the women on the mens shoulders trying their best to knock the other off their support system. It was amazing to Rogue that young adults could have fun without the fear of being attacked or killed by those who oppose your meaning of life, though those kids were probably human. She wanted the kind of life where she wasn't considered a threat based on her genetics; she envied them more than anything. The X-Men were notorious for transforming teenagers into soldiers of a better future, molding them into an elite militia if needed for defense. The more she was clear of her past life, the more Rogue began to doubt her previous ambitions of peace and co-existance.

In her periphral vision she could detect Remy's stature making his way toward her, his loosely tied boots dragged on the short wild flowers of the field he crossed. His care free nature was infectious causing Rogue to perk up once she turned her body a little more to see him completely. His boots and shorts combination made her chuckle to herself, "You look lahk a dork."

His feet slowly made their way to her as he called back in a hoaky english accent, " T'ought I looked smashing." He turned his attention to where Rogue had her attention drawn just moments before, understanding her reason for indulgence as he saw the smaller girl of the two fall into the water with a splash. "Too bad de rest of de gang can't be 'ere," he stood beside Rogue with his chisled arms crossed over his tight chest trying to compose himself taller than his six-one stature. "I t'ink we'd kill 'em in a game of chicken."

"That's the truth," simple input was all Rogue wanted to speak. There were a select handful of friends she would've enjoyed out here being able to laugh off the grudges from the grueling DR sessions after being beat by a good friend or a rival. Out of everyone who lived and breathed within the mansions walls, she wanted Logan. She wanted to crack the top of a cold Budweiser or five and know one hundred percent that he going to keep her safe like a father would his daughter. He was the closest figure to a father she never thought she would ever have, which she admitted to him once before. The attention he gave when she was troubled or just needed to vent was genuine never failing to give her the advice she always considered from his hundred plus years of wisdom.

But looking back at the times she spent then compared to the present, it wasn't enough to make her call Logan and have then take her home. It wasn't enought to give up on Remy and the time she was currently passing by in the wind. Remy was compassionate, humorous, patient and of course charming. Essentially, they were the few attributes she could list at the top of her head of the kind of man she needed.

She looked up to the man that stood beside her studying the lines in his face from the extra years he had on her causing a sudden thought to roll off the tip of her tongue, "Last one in details the truck!" Rogue dropped her shoes into the sand beside her bare feet and bolted as she lifted the bottom of her black tee to prevent it from getting soaked. The process of trying not to untie the strings of her swim top was harder than she thought while gaining speed.

"Fuck that!" Remy called after her as he wrenched off the white cotton then jumped out of his boots as his longer legs picked up the pace. His shirt landed in the sand close to hers though he was a mere few feet behind her headstart. His legs pumped faster to catch up though he could feel the sand Rogue kicked up as the granules tagged his shins.

Lucky for Rogue, her toes were the first to touch the cool water as her feet slightly sank into the wet sand at full speed. As soon as she was knee deep in the water her momentum was cut short from the waters density.

Before she knew what hit her, his arm curled around her waist using all his strength to thrust her into the air. "Remy!" She landed head first in the deeper water though she raised for air immediately, taking no time to recover her breath before shouting over his untamed laughter, "Dammit, Remy! You want me to get you too?" Her body cut through the water to meet her assailant since water carry sounds as she slicked back her blend of silver and chocolate locks of hair, "You gotta gimme some time to turn mah powers off. Keep yourself from gettin' knocked out, okay?"

"Sorry, chere. Obviously couldn't help m'self. Y' made it so tempting," Remy's eyes turned to red and black slits as a grin shined in her direction then sank below the surface. Rogue stood in place though on guard in case he tried the same stunt again. His presence was unknown beneath the dark water during the brief moments he disappeared. The water stirred in the deeper part of the lake as Remy made himself known. He shook his head to fling the excess water from his hair though he took his hand to wipe the pointed locks that fell into his eye sight.

Her attention was cut short to view the gulls that passed above their heads until they blended with the grays and whites of the clouds in the far distance then back to the empty lake with no Remy. "Shit," she whispered to herself as the guard reappeared. No matter how guarded Rogue could've been, it wasn't enough to shield against the stealth and agility he aquired from his former profession. In a preemptive strike, she felt him grip one hand on her waist and the other on the opposite leg, shuttling her into the air with all the strength the water would allow him to possess. The only thing he heard was a squak of surprise before her splash cut it short.

Remy's upper body was visible above the water as his laughter rang across the surface before she gasped for air and began to blow her nostrils from an unexpected intake of water that caused a slight burn in her tear ducts, "You're fuckin' dead, Remy!" She wasn't pissed, more annoyed he got her twice. Her strength in her legs couldn't overcome the water's density making the chase for the cajun more difficult that what it needed to be.

His laughter matched the volume of the splashed their feet caused in their low-speed chase. Rogue was determined to inflict some kind of damage without her powers but knew she wasn't near as strong as he. As his speed slowed to change direction of escape to throw her off course, his bare foot slipped on a patch of clay causing her to take a chance and pounce on his back with her arms around his neck for support. Like a lead weight, she leaned forward to make him fall into the aqua as he remained unstable from his mishap. She was impressed by how well his equilibrium held against her attack but just gave her the notion that maybe the other direction would be a better idea. She held onto him as her weight began to shift direction to lean backward but restrained from choking him or causing physical harm.

She could feel his momentum shift the way she wanted but before she could react, they both slammed into the water with her landing on the lake bed breaking his fall. She released him to scramble to her feet but noticed Remy beat her to it, locking on to the current glare in his eye that sealed her fate, "C'mon, girlie. Dat all y' got?" They stood arm lengths apart, both resembling drowned rats and both harnessing a challenging look that was intent on carrying out anything they had stashed away behind their genius.

Rogue ducked to gain leverage, psyching him out to the right where she most commonly starts in most altercations but sliced the water to his left. Before she could outsmart the cajun, his arm locked around her waist to prevent her from pulling off her next attack against him. She was good but he was better.

The strength he held in one arm was equal to both of hers on her best day but it wasn't enough to make her call it quits. She turned into a dead weight in his arm and the remaining water droplets on her skin was successful tactic in slipping through his grip to plummet into the murky water below them. With the help of an spare class she took under the instruction of Hank McCoy, pressure points become a must know when it came to hand-to-hand combat and non-lethal punishment. One of her hands found his calf and squeezed a particular spot to make his leg inoperable giving her the opportunity for a strike.

His hand went for anything at this point, catching the muscle along her ribcage giving a tight squeeze like she did to him. As soon as Rogue rose for air to keep from choking on the water, his ears rang with the woman's hysterics having a ticklish spot in a hold, "Bad idea, Rogue!" His other hand went to the other side gaining pace with the other despite her defense of wriggling out of his grip.

All she was able to do was hope she could escape his iron grip. Her form bent over then kicked water in the air once his hand went lower to her bare abdomen, clenching on to a muscle that caused another bout of laughter equaling the amount of times his grip tightened and loosened.

"R-Remy! Stop! S-stop!" She couldn't breathe much less speak, realizing her plea's of relief were useless. "Please! Remy!"

He did stop, not by demand, but by what he discovered on her skin of her hip: a tattoo of multi-colored shooting stars that were pointed to her naval. He didn't remember seeing it yesterday in the creek and felt stupid he failed to see it minutes before, "What's dis?" His words were filled with intrigue and curiosity more than any means of disapproval. If anything, he thought it was sexy.

Her eyes grew wide in fear knowing her undercover secret had been revealed turning the ink away from his sight, "What about it?"

A smile was the only weapon he had to try and diffuse her retreat, inching closer to her spot in the water which only caused her to back away even more, "Lemme see it, please?" He could see in her eyes that she was apprehensive in his actions especially when he took the next step toward her. She felt awkward standing in the sun as he slowly crossed the water once more to get a closer look at her body's foreign markings. It took no time for him to see his new discovery having to gently wipe the magnifying beads of water from her skin with his bare hand.

"No one knows about it. Gotta keep Logan from flipping out, y'know," she felt the need to say anything with his eyes lingering on her then moved away once she felt he got his dose of ogling.

"Remy likes it," the devilish grin was back, smearing his face with age marks and creases he obtained over the years.

There was a sense of unease that coursed through her body as a result of his smile causing her to turn about-face and reach the beach without a second thought. She couldn't explain why she did the things she did most times but she could justify her actions for this; she was scared of him once more. She was scared of what he was doing to her on the inside. Her walls were crashing down with each passing breath and now she was understanding the hidden wonders of human nature.

Remy stood in complete confusion as he watched her form escape with every inch, waiving off the notion to let her run, "Wait a second, Rogue!" His legs rushed through the cool waters causing the liquid to fly in every direction with the sounds of erratic splashes in its wake. She was ankle deep in the dark waters before he caught up to her, taking her hand in his with a god's grip then jerked her to look into his eyes but immediately averted her attention from the only second of contact, "What I do? Please tell me." She remained silent with avoiding meeting her green with his red. "Y' didn't 'ave 't show me de tattoo 'cause you could've told me no if you were dat uncomfortable 'bout it and I would've been jus' fine with dat. I'm sorry, cherie... But dere's t'ings about me dat you or I can't change... And dat's de way I feel 'bout y'-" The last words he spoke caused his heart to leap from his throat and through his mouth being the first to verbally set the cards on the table.

Rogue lifted her head to unknowingly shine her emerald irises in the sun that beat down on them both. They were wide like half-dollars from the shock he put her in, "What?"

"Is it not obvious for bot' of us? You're making me crazy! Bat shit crazy! I can't stop lookin' at you when I get de chance and I sure as hell can't stop t'inkin' 'bout you," his adrenaline surged through every inch of his being causing him to stop his exclamation. His grip on her hand shifted where his fingers were interlocked with hers. "And what about you, Anna? You told me your name for no particular reason which had to mean somet'ing, right? Do you t'ink I forgot about last night when you told me to kiss you? You didn't 'ave t' sleep beside me last night but you did. What I'm sayin' is dere's somt'ing between us dat hasn't been spoken of yet... And we need t' figure it out now."

"Remy," her accent touched his name in a way she couldn't explain, "Ah cain't say there's nothin' betwen us because there is but Ah don't know what good can come from this-_us_, Ah mean. You an' Ah are two worlds apart, sugah. What happens if things go sour? Or caught even? " Rogue could feel the tension looming in the air, thick and heavy. She conjured the words she wanted to speak having to look away from his gaze. The air in her lungs escaped along with the words she chose to expell, "There's no way in frozen hell that we will be together for long, Remy, Ah cain't take that risk."

Remy pulled her closer with little resistance from Rogue, placing the other hand upon her natural wavy locks of drying hair. She knew what he was doing but couldn't restist the temptation with her eyes fluttering to a close. It was dangerous to indulge in his advances after her half-truth of a confession but she was slowly learning the rush behind a kiss. She didn't want him to stop though she told herslf no. His lips met hers with dominance to taste the forbidden fruit of his desire sending the chemicals in Rogue's brain into a frenzy demanding more. One of her paralyzed arms wrapped around his neck to rush the pace of her lips as her tongue accidentally slipped across his.

Remy mastered any type of kissing technique in the past making Rogue's lessons more thrilling knowing how inexperienced this woman was in his field. Each barrage he sent her way was too much for her to keep up with though she was slowly gaining the technique he taught her.

Before Rogue knew what was happening, the kiss ended before it could go further having felt his lips separate from hers. Her eyes opened to a slow cadence to look into his eyes beyond the sun that shone vividly in the day's sky. "What's wrong, sugah?"

He took his hand from her hair and rested it on her cheek with his thumb resting across her high cheek bone, "I can't tell y', chere."

Her hand clenched onto his wrist, eyes brighter than the gems they resembled, "Remy, you know you can tell meh anythin'."

"Not somet'in' like dis. 'Nuff said," his other hand never left hers the moment it was taken, giving it a small squeeze.

"You have meh curious now, cajun," the hand on his wrist released to spread across his broad and scarred hand.

His voice box dipped as he swallowed hard while collecting his thoughts to translate off his tongue but when his stare met hers, his eyes hardened into something fierce before his courage slipped through his throat, "I-I think I love you, Rogue."

She felt her body heat rise past the warmth of the sun she was already wrapped her in while choosing to maintain eye contact. She was speachless. Stunned. Intimidated. His words were nothing of what she expected though they were magical to hear from his lips. They were genuine and anxious rolled into one beyond his cool persona of being a ladies man; they sounded to be the truth.

"Please say somet'ing..." His voice was almost a whisper with no desire to look away from her in hopes of the feeling to be mutual. His red irises darkened in color with the stress of the situation mainly because she scared _him_ like no previous woman ever has or maybe ever will even without the physical contact.

"Somethin'," Rogue was terrified. Windblown. Bedazzled. She couldn't say them, the words, but she didn't know what the diagnosis of the new ailment she was stricken down with and certainly didn't want to call it love.

His eyes closed in defeat as a mute sigh escaped his lungs. His eyes opened once more looking past the woman he confessed his love to only to disregard her presence. He took a step toward the direction of the shoreline, unplanting himself from the sank his weight sank into as his other foot followed.

Rogue watched him leave like she should have but now understood what it was like to be walked away from. It wasn't supposed to happen like this, her being unprepared that is, but, things like this are never planned like what she had read in a good book or watched in blockbuster hits. She couldn't believe how stubborn she was for her epic 'f' in reciporcating the feeling that had been playing its role in her personal issues and soul searching. Looking back when she was seventeen and thinking Scott Summers was 'the one', she couldn't compare that to what Remy was giving her upfront. Five seconds couldn't pass without Remy crossing her mind, like he is now.

Damn, she was stubborn but she wasn't ready to commit and love the reputable womanizer she ever met, which weren't many. She wasn't ready to witness him in the shadows of the night or feel his breath on every inch of her skin, though the thought lingered in her mind several times before. Every unwanted memory she obtained from others involved sex which always made her wonder what 'making love' was like, even if it was with Remy. Neither one of them could predict how much time they had left before they were caught causing that thought to run more rampant in the front of her brain.

She couldn't believe how terrible the feeling was having emotionally wounded the man who claimed to never be caged and tamed for any girl but now she learned that there _was_ something about her that made him want to give up the hunt for other womens skirts.

Everything boiled down to want to take the chance and love him; to throw everything away and experience what she has the opportunity to pursue. She had to tell him even if she did have to wait, whenever the moment deems suitable.

**By FAR my longest chapter! Yesssss! I was excited to get this one up and running which only felt like forever and a day, y'know? If it was **_**too **_**long, my bad. I wrote it on paper when I got the chance to. Seriously forgot how great it felt to just WRITE. Sasha's 'Wavy Gravy' helped a lot through this one toward the end (personal favorite since the ol' days of '07 lol) Whatcha think? Good? Bad? Hopefully not ugly lol. Don't be intimidated to voice that opinion, y'all. Peace in the middle east!**


	12. Chapter 12

**I'm freakin' sorry people! For sho' sorry. I know excuses are like a**holes, everybodys got 'em and they all stink lol but seriously... A day in the life of Lorelei's been nuttier than squirrel dook and again I'm sorry for your wait! **

**So you say you can't wait to see what happens next? Well here is the next installment of 'On The Loose'. Its kinda short but oh well lol. I've been setting it up more and more for how the story is going to progress so hopefully I can get back into the 'regular update' thing. **

**Ch 12: Into The Dark**

The ride home was quiet and uncomfortable, tension thick in the cab as if it could swallow them both without a second thought. Remy was lost in his own mental showdown having replayed his confession more than once as he peered out the window into the scenery that started to grow more familiar with each passing day. His stress was enough to eat him from the inside out. Not everyday did he claim to love someone, especially when the connection lacked physical interaction, spitting out the words on a whim in hand of his headstrong desire to have this woman for his own and to give her the dreams she expected for an unpromised future. He could read her expressions like a book, slightly giving him satisfaction knowing she was experiencing a battle from within caused by his haste; by _him_.

Remy was surprised by how dark the world could be when light pollution was beyond their sights, having to rely on the dim headlights the aging truck produced. As soon as Rogue made her last left turn onto their street, his anticipation for escape held high as his fingertips anxiously tapped on the leather seat between his knees. The torturous essence of the trucks confines gave him little nerve to speak to Rogue, not even to try to lighten the mood amongst the static he felt in his chest, being just as stubborn like woman beside him. He felt no reason to try.

Rogue on the other hand felt the need to speak; to explain her actions in full. She understood the love she recieved from her former teachers, mentors and friends but this... _feeling_ was a whole new game for her; this overwhelming feeling. She knew what it was, she wasn't _that_ naiive but now, she wanted to remain ignorant to the facts on the table. Damn that Remy Lebeau... He had to realize she was untouched and unloved; things she grew immune to, or so she thought. This type of love was uncharted territory, mainly because no one had tried to discover what Rogue could possess, giving her the notion it didn't exist.

The house in her view made her heart race and anxiety consume her limbs with the jitters, even more so when she applied the brakes and heard the passenger door pop open before she came to a complete stop. The steel door closed hard enough to connect the old hinges as she initiated the parking gear on the column and killed the engine. Everything within her tore in two as the seconds passed rapidly, allowing the emotions that ran inside to morph into a rush of tears which turned into sobs the more the memories lingered. Both hands made their way on the wheel to twelve o' clock, resting her forehead on her pale skin and allowed the tears to continue pouring from her soul. She had a good idea that the night was going to be tough especially when she already felt like hell.

**O.o**

Rogue sat on the living room sofa on the left end with her comforter across her unclothed legs hoping Remy was retired for the evening. Her hair was still damp from the shower she indulged less than forty-five minutes ago and the strawberry fragrance of her cheap shampoo helped calm her mind to the right elevation. The house was unnaturally quiet for that particular time of night, typically enjoying each others company and sharing things that they wouldn't with the others at the institute.

The stereo she sat beside played the music she remembered listening to in fractured memories of her childhood or the ones that were triggered by random songs that mended their way into a special memory. She rested her elbow on the end as the music took her to a place where she needed to be: calm and collected. Vintage music always had a strange effect on her like a personal mood enhancer minus the pill. She stretched her legs across the cushions until her bare feet slid from under the blanket to touch the cool air from the a/c then laid her head on her bicept once a particular intro entered her ear canal.

Her head still remained lax on her arm as her eyes closed with fatigue and concentration to her thoughts. She whispered aloud, lower than the music's hum, "Why do you want me so much, Remy? What _is_ it?" She knew the music's high would only last for so long before she came down to Earth. She already decided she was going to let the melodies of her favorite songs take her mind off that mysterious man whom she hurt by her stubborness until she drifted to sleep. The comforter was drawn over her chilled shoulder caused by the wet shirt that soaked the excess water of her slowly drying hair.

Yet, no matter how much she tried to shake his image, the more his burning eyes appeared in her closed eyelids. They only meant trouble to her though she was excited to feel her blood run hot because of another tangible being. Her heart rate enhanced enough to encourage the anxiety swelling in the pit of her stomach. She could hear his voice crystal clear in her conciousness as if the most private of places were being invaded. In her mind, she could remember the contours and precise definition of his sculpted body; the way the sun amplified his skin's texture and the glinting beads of water that followed gravity's effects as they rolled down his pectorals she couldn't help but stare at. It was easy to admit to herself he was gorgeous in every way but didn't have the courage to admit it to him.

Rogue peered over her right shoulder toward the hallway that led to their seperate rooms realizing Remy was behind one of those doors and it made the pain swell through her soul. A part of her questioned why she cared so much about why she hurt him because it never seemed to bother her before. Of course she cared for the guy but... Maybe she _did_ love him. Perhaps that smitten feeling _was_ love and it took wounding him to discover that.

Rogue lazily removed the blanket that covered her exposed skin, flatening her bare feet on the chilled hardwood floor before gaining the courage to erect herself from her current spot. She was apprehensive about what she was doing, sliding her long fingers through the wavy locks that slightly blocked her vision. Her feet took her to the hallway she hesitated on approaching but it felt like the right thing at the moment. Her fingertips touched same wall as his door, inhaling deeply with the same paralyzing feeling she had when she started her hair-brained plan. Rogue steadily tip-toed toward her target, noticing an orange glow seeping from the inch and a half space beneath the door.

She didn't give a rat's ass at this point now that she was so sure about the plan she already set forth. Her hand went to the knob as if it were to scare her into aborting her mission then softly turned the handle with little noise from what she could detect. After a brief pause she pushed the door open slowly without anyones consent but her own. She stood in the doorway with her eyes on Remy who seemed comfortable lying on his back, remaining completely unmoved by her intrusion, "Oui?"

"Got a minute?" Rogue managed to contain her voice from cracking. Before he could answer, she was already closing the thin wooden door with an angels grace. He lifted his head to see her standing against the door, left hand gripping the knob ready to escape if things got ugly.

Remy rolled to his side to rest on his elbow looking at her from top to bottom, "S'pose." His free hand motioned for her to take a seat but remained in his place. She was hesitant about his offer but her let her stubborness fly out the window for once and dropped her pride a notch or three and accepted his hospitality.

"What do you want, Rogue?"

"Ah came to apologize. For what Ah said and didn't say. For what Ah did and what Ah couldn't do... For everything, Sugah. Ah'm sorry Ah can be a bitch when Ah try not to but that only makes it worse. Ah dunno... Ah'm sorry Ah hurt ya, Remy and Ah wouldn't blame you if you choose not to accept mah apology..." She was scarce on words causing her apology to be short. The bed moved from Remy's shifting positions to sit upright causing her to turn away as her face grew hot from the anguish she was experiencing. She was being rejected by the only person who saw her the way she dreamed of being seen and now it was reduced to nothing.

Before Rogue could lift herself from his bed, she felt something warm and soft caress the back of her hand that gave her support. She was snapped from her view on the door to her left hand on the bed which was now covered by Remy's larger one then to meet his gaze.

"I shouldn't've done dat to y', chere, putting you in dat position. It was stupid of me to act so quick on somet'ing dat never existed. So honestly I should be apologizing for dis one. Don't bend yourself out of shape over not'ing-"

"It's not 'nothing', Remy. It's everything now. You told me everything Ah ever wanted to hear because you _wanted_ to, not because you felt obligated in saying what you did," Rogue was on a fine line and tried to remain on the right side but it was crashing down; to hold herself back from doing what she swore to never to and that was to 'love Remy Lebeau'. Everthing about him shined in her eyes now that she was aware of the shadows of her heart. "Last night's kiss was something Ah always wanted to feel since Ah was a hormonal teenager and to be honest, Ah never thought it would be you to give meh that. And Ah'm sorry Ah led you on, Remy. It was wrong of me to do something so selfish as to trick you."

Remy was silent when he heard the words he never thought he would hear from her, "People are people and not'ing will change what we do. You did what anyone else would've done if dey were caught in a moment that progressed farther than they expected... But last night only helped with what happened earlier." Remy looked to the floor in defeat as he took his hand from hers.

"Ah also wanted to tell you that..." Rogue felt her chest expand to inhale one last breath before her world shut down. Her pause made Remy look to her in anticipation to hear what she refused to say.

"What, Chere?" His right brow dipped as the other was cocked.

She closed her eyes breifly before lifting them to meet his stare once more, "Ah love you too, Remy."

Remy felt his heart leap right then and there when she said it. Those words she lacked before were said to him and only him. "Rogue... Are you serious?" He couldn't move from his spot as if he was paralyzed.

A nod was all she could give at the moment feeling his eyes on her, "Ah'll put that on everything."

**And there you have it :p Rogue loves the guy! (Who didn't see that comin' lol) M'kay guys as I said in the first a/n, this one was a bit short for the wait but with the absence, I'm not going to rush the events that make the story what I want it to be. I had some good jams to help with the writers block I **_**was**_** suffering but with the help of Ferry Corsten and mainstream pop music, I won! lol PLEASE stick around if you will cause I'm not leaving for a while :). **


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